Star Wars is one of the most beloved film franchises of all time, with a fan base spanning multiple generations. The imaginative setting and iconic characters have managed to thrill and inspire moviegoers since it first debuted in 1977, and through the years, enthusiasm for these stories has only grown. With creative works including film, television, video games, comics, and novels, Star Wars boasts a rich history of excellent storytelling that has stood the test of time.
With Disney’s acquisition in 2012, the Star Wars canon was trimmed back down to make way for a more focused set of tales that could engage with a fresher audience. The old works were removed and re-branded into the “Legends” continuity, and a massive wave of new content was swiftly rolled out to welcome the viewers to this new vision of what the Star Wars universe would be. With the sequel trilogy concluded, and new stories being released on Disney’s streaming service, the future of the franchise is a blank canvas for Disney’s creators to fill in as they see fit. Let’s take a look at what we already know, and speculate a bit on where this powerhouse of storytelling might be headed in the future.
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Shifting Narrative
Walt Disney Studios
In most pre-Disney Star Wars stories, there was always a clear focus on specific elements of the setting. One of the most notable and consistent points of these stories was the presence of the Jedi, with every major piece of Star Wars media being centered around the Order in some way. The original trilogy centered around Luke Skywalker’s journey to become a powerful Jedi Knight, and the prequels’ entire premise was based on the fall of the Jedi Order and rise of the Empire.
Disney, by contrast, has not shied away from stories that place the focus on characters and conflicts that are disconnected from this initial scope, sometimes forgoing references to Jedi or The Force entirely. Both Rogue One and Solo featured stories centered on soldiers, smugglers, and spies with nary a lightsaber in sight (Rogue One’s excellent hallway scene being a notable exception). This trend continues with Disney+ entires such as the Rogue One spinoff, Andor, as well as Patty Jenkins’ upcoming Rogue Squadron, giving these more grounded and relatable characters a kind of focus which would have been unheard of before the Disney acquisition of the franchise.
This is great news for fans that may enjoy the setting, but would prefer a perspective more grounded in the humanity of the characters as they face the challenges of the Star Wars galaxy without the fantastical elements that accompany Jedi-focused stories.
The Streaming Age
Lucasfilm / Disney
Modern films and TV series are no longer limited to theaters and network television. With Disney embracing the age of streaming with their Disney+ platform, the vast majority of Star Wars content is now released directly to your living room. Stories like The Mandalorian, Andor, and Obi-Wan Kenobi have blurred the line between episodic television and feature film, and upcoming Disney+ projects like Ahsoka and new seasons of The Mandalorian and Andor promise to continue the trend of well-developed, quality content on the streaming platform.
Disney+ is not the only home for future Star Wars stories, though. Powerhouse creators like Taika Waititi, Sean Levy, and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy continue to be involved in major theatrical productions set in the Star Wars galaxy, and Jenkins’ Rogue Squadron continues to be an eagerly anticipated addition to the mythology that audiences will be able to enjoy on the big screen. These films will also be available on the Disney+ platform alongside the series that they compliment, providing fans with the deepest and most extensive Star Wars experience ever.
While Star Wars is still a major draw for the theater crowd, it is clear that streaming series is the primary arm of the franchise going forward. Just as the stories and narratives have evolved with the turn of the century, so too has the way that new stories are released. Disney is taking their streaming series very seriously, which keeps the quality of these productions high, and that means that a focus on the streaming shows is a good thing for fans of the franchise.
Is There a Target?
Disney+
Star Wars has been around since 1977, and that means that the fan base spans multiple generations. This is not a series that has just one kind of audience. Adults who enjoy Star Wars are just as common as children who love the series, and recognizing that is something that Disney has managed the difficult task of doing through their diverse collection of different projects. Through both film and television, there has been a clear goal of releasing stories that any fan can appreciate.
With the release of Rogue One, Disney proved that a Star Wars movie with more mature themes would not only be a serviceable entry into the franchise, but would also be a successful one. The Disney+ spinoff series, Andor, has also been praised as one of the best series of 2022, with the second season already on the way. Rather than making these projects more kid-friendly, Disney has allowed the creators to lean into a darker, more morally ambiguous side of the characters, where the idea of good and evil is more complicated than the classic “light side vs. dark side” that the series previously adhered to.
Kid-friendly shows are still a major part of the franchise as well, with the fun and colorful characters of shows like Rebels, The Bad Batch, and Tales of the Jedi serving up wholesome and lighter entertainment for kids in an unmistakably Disney flavor. Even so, the core films as well as television shows like The Mandalorian walk a tightrope between demographic extremes, delivering stories and experiences that are appealing to adults and children alike. Diversifying their lineup in this way demonstrated a clear vision of a Star Wars franchise that is accessible to all the fans, guaranteeing that no matter who you are there will always be a Star Wars story for you.
What’s Next?
Lucasfilm Ltd.
Disney’s roadmap for the future of the Star Wars franchise may still be in progress, but they have delivered a taste of what fans can expect. This is not a Star Wars devoted to a single focus and limited to enormous, large-scale feature films like it once was. It is clear from the films and TV shows that Disney has given their fans that the vision for Star Wars is a broad and rich landscape of different perspectives. The original films gave audiences a setting that had the potential to grow and develop into a living, breathing universe, and the creators at Disney clearly saw that potential. What we’ve seen may only be the beginning of Star Wars’ future, and while audiences may not know exactly what’s in store, they can rest assured that the franchise is in capable hands.
