TheStar Warsuniverse is massive and has spanned multiple media. While most people associate it with a film series, it has stretched into comics, novels, and video games. While the franchise had also dabbled in television through animated series likeThe Clone WarsandRebels, in 2019, the franchise took the leap into prestige television with the release ofThe Mandalorianon Disney+.
Updated June 28, 2025: WithAhsokacurrently airing on Disney+, this article has been updated with even more information regarding the future of theStar Warsfranchise.
The Mandalorianwas praised by fans and critics when it premiered in November 2019 and only looked better by comparison following the disappointment ofStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerone month later. While Lucasfilm has had trouble getting new Star Wars films off the ground, the franchise has exploded on television. Spinning off fromThe Mandalorianhas beenThe Book of Boba Fettand the recently releasedAhsoka.Obi-Wan Kenobi, which saw Ewan McGregor return to the titular role, andAndor,which received some of the best reviews in the entire franchise, have been warmly received. What’s more, it’s reported that Lucasfilm is looking todevelop even more films, including one set afterThe Rise of Skywalker. Here is what theStar Warsmovies can learn from the television series.
Correct Use of Fan Service
Whilefan service is a niceaddition to any franchise, the moments must be chosen wisely. The failure ofThe Rise of Skywalkerhad a lot to do with this. From bringing back Palpatine to randomly giving Chewbacca a medal, these moments were mainly done for more hardcoreStar Warsfans at the expense of the story. Yet it also seemed ashamed of the prequel trilogy, failing to bring back elements from that trilogy due to the poor fan reaction.
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Even though the Disney+ series features far more deep-cut Easter Eggs, they, most of the time, are in service of the larger plot. The best example of this is the character of Black Krrsantan, the wookie bounty hunter inThe Book of Boba Fett. HardcoreStar Warsfans might recognize him from the comics, but for anyone who hasn’t read those, his appearance is not a distraction because the series tells you everything you need to know about him: he is a Wookie bounty hunter.
Meanwhile, they embrace a full scale of theStar Warsgalaxy. There are obviously a lot of references to the original trilogy, but elements like Din Djarrin’s new ship being a refit of a Naboo starfighter show it is embracing the whole scope of the saga, allowing there to be something for everyone.
Embracing Long-Form Storytelling For A New Age
While theStar Warsfranchise began with the original film in 1977, the story has grown quite a bit. Thanks to Disney+, it’s been established that the miniseries format allows more room for exposition in theStar Warsuniverse. Without a concrete time constraint, the creators are given more freedom for gradual exposition and allow for smoother character development, as seen in Din Djarin’s character inThe Mandalorian. Audiences have seen him go from a loner to a loving father figure, as well as a reluctant hero to the Mandalorian people.
This kind of character development was unfortunately sped up inThe Rise of Skywalkerto an unrealistic level in which Rey’s character bounces between the Dark and the Light. This expedited depiction of character development may have been prevented if the story had been told more consistently across the entire trilogy or had J.J. Abramsbuilt off the interesting developments left byThe Last Jedi.The new films could benefit from having television series in between releases to flesh out the story, much likeThe Clone Warsdid for the prequels.
Focus on Characters
Tying back to the previous point, one thing the television series does very well is put the spotlight on the characters. TheStar Warsfilms, for the most part, are focused on the wider story. There certainly are a lot of great character moments in them, and audiences clearly care about the characters, but the plot is always the driving focus behind the stories. EvenRouge: One A Star Wars Storyis focused on the plot of how the rebels got the Death Star plans.
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Meanwhile, the series is all character-centric. Even notice how they are all named after characters.The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi. These series are about putting the spotlight on supporting characters and fleshing them out. It shows the larger workings of the intergalactic war fromthe perspective of supporting characters. Many of the shows are about lesser stakes than the movies, at least at a Galaxy-wide level. However, the struggles and achievements of the characters feel more important, mostly because the characters feel more important on a personal level to the audience. The films could do this, focusing less on “what is the plot” and more on “what character deserves the spotlight.”
Not Afraid To Get Political
The prequel trilogy was criticized for howfocused on intergalactic politicsit was, particularlyThe Phantom Menace.A common fan complaint was nobody wanted to see Senate meetings; they came for lightsabers and blasters. The sequel trilogy overcorrected on this, shying away from any form of politics and leaving some fans confused about the status quo of the galaxy far, far away. What was The First Order in relation to the New Republic? How did the Resistance factor into this?
The Disney+ series, due to having more time, has been allowed to dig into the deeper politics of the galaxy.The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett,andAshokahave provided context for how The First Order grew under the nose ofthe New Republic, as well as what happens to war heroes like Hera Syndulla after the fighting ended. Meanwhile,Andorhas excelled by showing the banality of evil, the bureaucratic nature of the Empire, and the various infighting between Imperial officers. It is just as exciting to see them try to one-up each other as any dog fight.
Meanwhile, the series was unafraid to explore how fascist governments rise and maintain power. The original Star Wars trilogy did not shy away from politics, and the real-world politics of the 1960s and 70s informed George Lucas’s galactic trilogy. The new films should embrace this and realize there is a middle ground between the stuffiness of the prequels and the disregard for any political insight that the sequel trilogy went for.
Trust Filmmakers
Lucasfilm has a spotty history with filmmakers. So far, it appears the only directors to get films off the ground have been J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson.Yet the list of directors who have had issues with LucasfilmregardingStar Warsmovies is longer than those who have actually directedStar Warsfilms. Yet, oddly, they have allowed for a wider array of creative voices on the television series. This might be because there is less at stake for an episode of TV than a film, but one looks at some of the series' directors, and one wonders why Lucasfilm has not approached them for a movie.
Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo), Robert Rodriguez (Sin City), Rick Famuyiwa (Dope), Peter Ramsey (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), and Lee Isaac Chung (Minari) are just a few of the names that have directed Star Wars television series that if given a film would get fans excited. That is not even to mention thatStar Warsstill doesn’t have a movie directed by a woman (hopefully the film by Sharmeeen Obaid-Chinoy happens), but on television,Bryce Dallas Howard has proven herselftime and time again, and Deborah Chow impressed Lucasfilm that they let her direct every episode ofObi-Wan Kenobi. This is clearly the area Lucasfilm needs to focus on most.
