Can Adam Driver’s 'The Hunt for Ben Solo' Still Happen? The Answer Might Lie With Ryan Reynolds’ Decade-Old Movie

Published 10/25/2025, 3:19 PM EDT

Adam Driver reportedly pitched Disney an ambitious concept called The Hunt for Ben Solo, a story that could have taken his character from Star Wars in an entirely new direction. The movie house, however, passed on the idea, leaving fans to speculate what the actor had imagined for the troubled hero. But could this narrative still have a chance? Interestingly, a decade-old Ryan Reynolds movie may offer a blueprint.

With Hollywood increasingly revisiting and reimagining beloved franchises, even stories once shelved find their moment to shine.

Disney rejected Adam Driver’s Ben Solo spin-off, but a Ryan Reynolds parallel offers hope

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Adam Driver’s ambitious Star Wars spin-off, The Hunt for Ben Solo, may have been shelved by Disney, as confirmed by him in an AP interview, but history suggests there is still hope for the project’s revival. A decade-old example could guide this comeback: Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool. After Fox initially scrapped the film, leaked test footage sparked massive fan demand, eventually forcing the studio to greenlight it. The result? Over $780 million worldwide. Star Wars fans are engaging in a similar fight as well to see their favorite anti-hero back on screen.

Notably, not only did Ryan Reynolds make Deadpool, which hit theaters in 2016, he also turned it into a trilogy, comprising Deadpool 2, which arrived in cinemas in 2018, and Deadpool and Wolverine in 2024. The latter two films made $786 million and $1.3 billion in global ticket sales, respectively. At this point, Disney, which is unhappy with Ryan Reynolds, just has a clear choice in front of it.

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So, what are the chances that the Mouse House will take a cue from Ryan Reynolds’ move? The answer is not straightforward.

Will Disney’s next move mirror Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool gamble?

If Disney takes note of Ryan Reynolds’ pattern, The Hunt for Ben Solo could still find a way back into development. Much like Deadpool, the project’s revival, however, would not just depend on audience demand but also on creative passion. The latter aspect can ride solely on Adam Driver’s name, as his Ben Solo remains one of the Star Wars sequel trilogy’s most compelling arcs. With fan interest reigniting online now, who knows? Disney might in fact be persuaded to revisit his story, proving that, in Star Wars, no character or idea is ever truly gone.

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Ultimately, Adam Driver’s vision for The Hunt for Ben Solo may have been shelved for now, but the path carved by films like Deadpool shows that a once-dismissed project can defy the odds. With audiences still captivated by Ben Solo and Driver’s performance, the story’s resurrection is not impossible, and in a galaxy full of surprises, hope for the troubled hero endures.

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Do you think The Hunt for Ben Solo should be made? Let us know in the comments.

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Seema Sinha

514 articles

Seema Sinha is a journalist at Netflix Junkie, covering the celebrity culture and global cinema beats. With three years of experience at major Hollywood media verticals, she filters real news from the gossip and buzz. Her core focus is on pop culture narratives surrounding musicians—primarily Taylor Swift—with her reporting striking a fine balance between human insight and editorial clarity.

Edited By: Hriddhi Maitra

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