Director James Mangold wanted to set his Star Wars movie thousands of years before the existing films because he didn't want to be "handcuffed by so much lore". The A Complete Unknown filmmaker is set to co-write and direct Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi,

James Mangold is taking the phrase, “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away,” quite literally. Mangold’s Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi will be a prequel movie set thousands of years before the Skywalker Saga. Mangold, who will direct Dawn of the Jedi, is excited to tell a new story with his co-writer, Beau Willimon.

While not much is known about the plot of James Mangold‘s upcoming Star Wars movie, it has been confirmed that it will take place 25,000 years before the events of A New Hope. In a recent discussion,

James Mangold, who just picked up a Directors Guild of America nomination for “A Complete Unknown,” recently told MovieWeb that his upcoming “Star Wars” movie is deliberately set thousands of years before any other movie in the long-running franchise so that he doesn’t have to deal with the canon and can thus avoid angering fans.

Rise of the Jedi', director James Mangold explained that his prequel will deviate from the nearly 50-year old franchise.

Beau and I, in relation to Star Wars, have been working on a script, and we'll see what happens [...] Again, it’s just a matter of, do we find a way on the page to say something original? The Star Wars movie would be taking place 25,

The thing James Mangold finds most appealing about his Dawn of the Jedi movie may also allow the film to chart a bold new future for Star Wars.