Lucasfilm has officially expanded one of Star Wars: Visions' most acclaimed stories into a full-fledged animated limited series, with Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi set to premiere on Disney+. For years, Star Wars: Visions has shown how far the galaxy far, far away can stretch when creators are free to experiment with bold animation styles and original storytelling. Among its standout entries, The Ninth Jedi quickly became a fan favorite thanks to its compelling characters, inventive lightsaber lore, and the promise of a much bigger adventure waiting beyond its runtime.

That promise is finally becoming a reality. Rather than remaining a self-contained anthology story, The Ninth Jedi is returning in an expanded format that will give audiences more time to explore its characters, mysteries, and distant-future setting. Here's everything you need to know about Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi, including its release date, plot, cast, and creative team.

Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi is scheduled to premiere on Disney+ in Summer 2026. While Lucasfilm has yet to announce a specific release date or episode count, anticipation for the series has continued to grow since its official unveiling. Before its streaming debut, fans attending Anime Expo on July 2, 2026, will get an exclusive first look at the opening episode in Japanese with English subtitles, offering an early glimpse at the series' expanded story.

The announcement was accompanied by the first trailer, giving audiences a preview of the anime's stunning visuals and action-packed lightsaber battles. The series marks the debut project under the new "Visions Presents" banner, a label created to expand selected stories from Star Wars: Visions into longer, serialized adventures rather than standalone anthology episodes.

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But a release date is only part of the excitement, the story itself promises to take viewers deeper into one of Visions' most fascinating corners of the galaxy.

Set roughly 1,000 years after the events of The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi follows Lah Kara, the Force-sensitive daughter of legendary lightsaber smith Lah Zhima. In this distant future, the Jedi Order has nearly disappeared, leaving the galaxy vulnerable to powerful dark forces. Kara's journey began in the original The Ninth Jedi short, where she searched for her kidnapped father while discovering her own connection to the Force.

The upcoming series continues directly from the sequel short, The Ninth Jedi: Child of Hope. Kara remains on the run from relentless hunters while searching for her father and uncovering the secrets behind his extraordinary lightsabers, which change color and even alter their blade length based on the wielder's connection to the Force. Alongside returning allies like Margrave Juro and her loyal droid companion Teto, Kara's mission could ultimately determine whether the Jedi Order has a future at all. With a longer runtime, the series is expected to explore its characters, mythology, and emotional stakes in far greater depth than the anthology shorts allowed.

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Of course, bringing this ambitious story to life requires a talented creative team and a familiar cast returning to the galaxy.

The creative team behind The Ninth Jedi is led by several familiar names. Kenji Kamiyama, who wrote and directed the original short, returns as supervising director and series script supervisor, ensuring continuity with the acclaimed anthology episodes. Shunsuke Tada serves as director, while Hitoshi Itō joins as producer. Animation duties once again fall to Production I.G, the celebrated Japanese studio known for delivering the visually striking look of the original story.

The voice cast is also expected to feature several returning performers from the earlier installments. Chinatsu Akasaki and Kimiko Glenn reprise the role of Lah Kara in Japanese and English, respectively. Returning cast members are also expected to include Tetsuo Kanao/Andrew Kishino as Margrave Juro, Hiromu Mineta/Masi Oka as Ethan, Shin-ichiro Miki/Simu Liu as Lah Zhima, and Akira Ishida/Freddie Highmore as Teto. Together, the returning cast and creative team aim to preserve everything fans loved about the original while expanding its world through long-form storytelling.

Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi represents an exciting new direction for the Star Wars: Visions franchise. By transforming one of its most beloved anthology stories into a dedicated limited series, Lucasfilm is giving Kara's journey the space it deserves while introducing a fresh era of Jedi mythology set far beyond the Skywalker saga. With Production I.G returning, familiar voices reprising their roles, and a richer exploration of its unique lightsaber lore, the series is shaping up to be one of Disney+'s most anticipated animated releases.

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Are you excited to see Lah Kara's journey continue in Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi? Let us know in the comments!