A Hollywood veteran takes the ceremonies
Kathleen Kennedy, who led Lucasfilm for 14 years before stepping down at the end of 2025, has been appointed to run ceremonies and content for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and Paralympics. She takes the position vacated by Peter Rice, who was named Netflix's chief content officer this week and succeeded Bela Bajaria in that job. Rice will stay connected to the LA28 project as an executive producer.[S1][S2][S3][S4][S5][S6][S7][S8]
In the role, Kennedy is responsible for delivering all four ceremonies: the Olympic opening on July 14, 2028, the Olympic closing on July 30, the Paralympic opening on Aug. 15 and the Paralympic closing on Aug. 27. She will work alongside Ben Winston, the creative director of the ceremonies.[S1]
Wasserman calls her a legend
Casey Wasserman, chairperson and president of LA28, described Kennedy as a legend and one of Hollywood's all-time greats. He argued that with the world's attention turning to Los Angeles for the Games, nobody was better placed than Kennedy to summon the magic of Hollywood.[S1]
Kennedy said the Olympics had been a touchstone throughout her life and called the Games one of the great unifying experiences people share. She credited Wasserman with a bold vision for what the event could mean for Los Angeles and the wider world, and said she was thrilled to be asked to help realize it. She noted that she and her husband, Frank Marshall, have attended virtually every Games since Los Angeles hosted in 1984, and she praised the foundation Rice had laid.[S1]
From Star Wars to the Olympic stage
Kennedy spent 14 years as president of Lucasfilm and remains connected to the studio behind Star Wars and Indiana Jones. Her recent credits include last summer's The Mandalorian and Grogu and the forthcoming Star Wars: Starfighter, which stars Ryan Gosling.[S1]
Over a long producing career she worked closely with Steven Spielberg on films including E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Jurassic Park and Lincoln, and she was involved in choosing J.J. Abrams to direct 2015's Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which brought the franchise back to life with more than $2 billion in global box office. Her time at Lucasfilm also brought disappointments, among them 2018's Solo: A Star Wars Story and 2023's Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.[S1]
