Star Wars is an American epic space opera franchise, centered on a film series created by George Lucas. It depicts the adventures of various characters “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away”.
The franchise began in 1977 with the release of the film Star Wars (subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope in 1981), by 20th Century Fox, which became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. It was followed by the similarly successful sequels The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983); these three films constitute the original Star Wars trilogy (Episodes IV–VI). A prequel trilogy (Episodes I–III) was later released between 1999 and 2005, which received a more mixed reaction from critics and fans in comparison to the original trilogy. More recently, a sequel trilogy (Episodes VII–IX) began with the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015). All seven films were nominated for or won Academy Awards, and were commercial successes, with a combined box office revenue of $6.46 billion, making Star Wars the fourth highest-grossing film series. Additional theatrical films outside of the main saga include the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) and an upcoming series of anthology films, which will begin with the release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016).
In May 2014, Lucasfilm announced that Gareth Edwards would direct the first anthology film, to be released on December 16, 2016, with Gary Whitta writing the first draft.[100] On March 12, 2015, the film’s title was revealed to be Rogue One with Chris Weitz rewriting the script, with Felicity Jones, Ben Mendelsohn and Diego Luna starring. On April 19, 2015, a teaser trailer was shown exclusively during the closing of the Star Wars Celebration. Lucasfilm also announced that filming would begin in the summer of 2015. The plot will revolve around a group of rebels on a mission to steal the Death Star plans; director Edwards stated, “It comes down to a group of individuals who don’t have magical powers that have to somehow bring hope to the galaxy.” Additionally, Kathleen Kennedy and Kiri Hart confirmed that the stand-alone films will be labeled as “anthology films”. Edwards stated that the style of the film will be similar to that of a war film, stating, “It’s the reality of war. Good guys are bad. Bad guys are good. It’s complicated, layered; a very rich scenario in which to set a movie.”
Untitled Han Solo Anthology film
