Star Wars: A Complete Timeline Of Disney’s Canon

Disney’s Star Wars canon is officially 10 years old – and here’s a timeline of how the saga has grown over the last decade. Disney acquired Lucasfilm in October 2012, and it took the House of Mouse just under two years to decide the franchise’s future direction. Finally, on April 25, 2014, Lucasfilm confirmed that the old Star Wars Expanded Universe was now officially classed as “Legends” – because canon was beginning again.

The new policy was subtly different. Previously, George Lucas’ Star Wars movies and TV shows had been the highest tier of canon, with all other content expected to orbit around it. Now, though, Lucasfilm announced that everything was equally canon, from movies to computer games, from TV shows to comic books. Since then, the new Star Wars continuity has expanded at a staggering rate. Here’s a timeline pulling out all the most important milestones.

2014

The new Star Wars canon is born

The story of Disney’s Star Wars canon begins on April 25, 2014, when Lucasfilm officially announced the end of the old Expanded Universe and the beginning of new canon. Through a quirk of timing, the first story in Disney canon was technically published just a couple of days before the announcement – part one of a two-part tale published in Star Wars Insider (later celebrated on the official Star Wars website). A few months later, John Jackson Miller’s A New Dawn became the first original novel created as part of this new continuity.

The main focus was on the launch of Star Wars Rebels in October 2014, which brought the franchise back to the small screen after Disney’s cancelation of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. A New Dawn is itself a prequel to this animated series, and Lucasfilm published several other books – aimed at younger audiences – that supported it as well. Disney’s canon had officially begun.

2015

The Star Wars sequel trilogy is launched

Disney’s Star Wars canon was technically born in 2014, but it wasn’t until 2015 that it really became notable for its cultural impact. This began in January 2015, with Star Wars #1 by Jason Aaron and John Cassaday breaking comic book sales records for the last 20 years. In November, Marvel launched their first annual Star Wars event, and “Vader Down” is one of the best events of the last decade. Meanwhile, Lucasfilm Publishing went from strength to strength, with some vitally important books released.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens released on December 18, 2015, grossing $2.071 worldwide. This leaped forwards decades into the timeline, introducing viewers to new heroes and new villains. Although criticized for overplaying the nostalgia card, it was generally seen as a tremendous success.

2016

Rogue One hits cinemas accompanied by a bold transmedia initiative

Marvel Comics continued to expand through 2016, and Lucasfilm Publishing released an ever-expanding line of books – including a second adapting an unfinished story from Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Towards the end of the year, Lucasfilm Publishing launched a staggeringly impressive transmedia initiative centered on the next movie release; James Luceno’s Catalyst and Alexander Freed’s novelization of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story remain the gold standard for transmedia tie-ins to a theatrical release.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was intended to be the first of a range of anthology movies, a step removed from the main Skywalker saga. Although production had been troubled, it was a tremendous success, grossing $1.057 billion in the worldwide box office. Sadly, the release was overshadowed by the passing of Carrie Fisher on December 27; she would be missed.

2017

The Star Wars fanbase begins to fracture (again)

2017 was an exciting year for lovers of the old Expanded Universe, with Legends author Timothy Zahn returning to tell canon adventures of Grand Admiral Thrawn, one of his greatest Legends creations. In November, Star Wars: Battlefront II‘s story mode complemented Chuck Wendig’s “Aftermath” trilogy, and even featured a subtle tie-in to the sequel trilogy. Unfortunately, the game received a mixed reception.

The Star Wars fanbase has seldom been notable for its unity, and 2017 was sadly the year when it really began to break apart in explosive fashion. Although Star Wars: The Last Jedi was a financial success – it grossed an impressive $1.333 billion in the global box office – but viewers were left divided by the plot. Director Rian Johnson’s Luke Skywalker plot came in for particular criticism.

2018

Star Wars’ first box office failure leaves Disney in disarray

2018 was a difficult year for Lucasfilm, as the studio struggled to figure out how to respond to the Star Wars: The Last Jedi backlash. Matters worsened in May, when Solo: A Star Wars Story became the first Star Wars movie to fail to break even at the box office. There’s still intense debate over what exactly went wrong; some blame a lackluster marketing campaign (the first trailer dropped only three months before the film’s release), while others point to an uninspiring concept. Lucasfilm seem to blame the recasting of Han Solo.

The box office failure of Solo led to Lucasfilm abandoning other anthology projects. This coincided with a new focus on TV shows for Disney+, the streaming service that would launch next year; Lucasfilm began to pivot away from the big screen, prioritizing working on future shows. Many anthology projects would ultimately be repurposed as movies.

2019

The sequel trilogy ends… and Star Wars is reborn on Disney+

2018 had been relatively quiet for Star Wars, but 2019 was an explosive one. Galaxy’s Edge opened at Disneyland, with Lucasfilm confirming the theme park was canon and even publishing tie-in comics and novels. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker released in December, bringing an end to the Skywalker saga. Unfortunately, the sequels were generally seen as ending not with a bang, but a whimper.

The launch of Disney+ on November 12, 2019, was a milestone event for Star Wars. The Mandalorian season 1’s premiere went viral in large part because Lucasfilm had somehow managed to keep the introduction of Grogu secret (the character was initially named The Child, but he was swiftly given the nickname “Baby Yoda” online). Although the movies had stumbled, The Mandalorian marked a new dawn for Lucasfilm; the beginning of an era where Star Wars was principally a TV franchise.

2020

The Clone Wars return

2020 was a difficult year, and not just for Lucasfilm; the coronavirus pandemic affected the whole world, and seriously disrupted production of Hollywood movies and TV shows. This meant a slower roll-out to the various Star Wars Disney+ TV shows than Lucasfilm had probably hoped for – but the two TV shows that dropped, Star Wars: The Clone Wars and The Mandalorian season 2, were both massive events. Oddly enough, both involved fan-favorite character Ahsoka Tano.

Ashley Eckstein returned to voice Ahsoka Tano once again in Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7, which completed the story Disney canceled after acquiring Lucasfilm (and, consequently, rewrote the continuity of some tie-ins that had been intended to wrap things up). Rosario Dawson played the live-action Ahsoka in The Mandalorian season 2, however, and the fan reaction convinced Lucasfilm to double down on plans ignoring the character. Even better, The Mandalorian season 2’s ending saw Mark Hamill reprise the role of Luke Skywalker, delighting viewers.

2021

The High Republic Begins

Looking back, 2021 was one of the most important years since Disney purchased Lucasfilm – and not because of the small screen. Charles Soule’s Light of the Jedi introduced readers to the High Republic Era, in a saga set centuries before the Skywalker saga. This would swiftly prove to be Lucasfilm’s boldest transmedia initiative of all time, and the story is still ongoing. The High Republic Era has even been incorporated into live-action and animation, appearing in Young Jedi Adventures and the upcoming series The Acolyte.

Star Wars animation flourished in 2021, with Star Wars: Visions stepping beyond the bounds of canon for the first time – allowing different art houses to imagine their own versions of Star Wars. Meanwhile, Star Wars: The Bad Batch served as the spiritual successor to The Clone Wars, featuring Clone Force 99 as they tried to survive the Dark Times of the Empire’s reign. There’s often a tendency to look down on animation as somehow lesser, but both these shows demonstrate how foolish that is.

2022

The return of Ewan McGregor & Hayden Christensen

Lucasfilm Television’s output had slowed down because of the coronavirus pandemic, but recovered in 2022. Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen made their triumphant return in the Obi-Wan Kenobi Disney+ TV show, and the delighted response of the fandom showed how dearly the prequels have come to be loved. Equally exciting, though, was the premiere of Tony Gilroy’s Andor in September; this would prove to be the most critically-acclaimed Star Wars story to date.

Tales of the Jedi was another success for Lucasfilm, but the year wasn’t entirely positive: the launch of the ill-fated Galactic Starcruiser was met with a raised eyebrow from fans due to the price, rather than excitement. Although the story told at Galactic Starcruiser is canon – and important, featuring Rey and Kylo Ren – the low number of visitors would mean it closed by September 2023. It remains to be seen what Lucasfilm will do with the site.

2023

The Star Wars universe expands again

2023 should really be seen as one of Lucasfilm Publishing’s best years to date. Star Wars: The High Republic continued to go from strength to strength, while Adam Christopher’s Shadow of the Sith and Delilah S. Dawson’s Inquisitor: Rise of the Red Blade number among some of the best Star Wars books ever published. Set at very different points in the timeline, both books shine a light on the dark side itself.

The Mandalorian season 3 attempted to reorient itself around Mandalore rather than Din Djarin, and receiived a mixed reception. More positive, though, was Dave Filoni’s Ahsoka; bold and imaginative, which dared to expand Star Wars beyond the boundaries of the galaxy itself. It opened up whole new territories that are simply begging for exploration.

2024 so far

The opening of 2024 has been dedicated to Star Wars animation

So far, with the exception of Lucasfilm Publishing and ongoing comics, 2024 has been all about animation. Star Wars: The Bad Batch‘s final season began on February 21, and is still ongoing. Looking forward, the best is yet to come with The Acolyte, which will introduce the High Republic Era into live-action and cement the transmedia initiative’s legacy in an entirely new medium. What’s more, off-screen , there are reports new Star Wars movie production will finally begin in June – meaning it won’t be long until the franchise returns to the big screen.