This weekend, Disney held Star Wars Celebration in Japan, and brought with it news for the franchise’s film, TV, merch (including toys!), books and comic books, and game prospects. There was a lot going on, and you might’ve missed some things, so we rounded up our own coverage to help you keep in mind what to expect from the galaxy far, far away in the next few years.
The Mandalorian & Grogu
As the first Star Wars movie in half a decade and the first big movie for its two leads, The Mandalorian & Grogu has a lot to live up to. The film’s panel at SWCJ didn’t offer any plot specifics, but it did show off new footage of Din and Grogu hanging with Zeb from Star Wars Rebels (who made his live-action debut on The Mandalorian) and some good ol’ bounty hunting action. Also, a weirdly buff Hutt. You can read our description here.
Star Wars: Starfighter
There’s another movie coming. Directed by Shawn Levy (Deadpool & Wolverine) and starring Ryan “Ken” Gosling, Starfighter takes place five years after Rise of Skywalker with a new set of characters. That’s all we know right now, save for its newly scheduled release date: May 28, 2027, nearly a year after Mando and Grogu hit the silver screen.
Star Wars Visions
Japanese animation studios are coming back for the third season of the animated anthology series. That’s not all—”The Ninth Jedi,” one of the shorts from season two, is being expanded into its own TV series. Read more and watch the Visions trailer here.
The Clone Wars
It’s been five years since the CG Clone Wars series ended for real this time, and during the Lucasfilm Animation panel, Dave Filoni showed off a scene that never made it into the show. In the rough footage, Anakin faces off against burgeoning bounty hunter Boba Fett, who at this point in his career would’ve been under the tutelage of Cad Bane. You can read and see more here, but speaking of Bane…
Tales of the Underworld
First came the Jedi, then came the Empire. Now, the Tales anthology series turns its eye toward two notable crooks in the Star Wars universe: young bounty hunter Cad Bane, and ex-Sith assassin Asajj Ventress sometime after after the events of the Dark Disciple novel. She was the star of Tales’ first episode, and you can read our description of the events here. The full miniseries premieres May 4.
Darth Maul: Shadow Lord
Everyone’s favorite unkillable Sith and crime lord is getting an animated show of his own in 2026. Set between his last appearance in Clone Wars and his eventual return in Rebels, Shadow Lord will see Maul (again voiced by Sam Witwer) building out what’ll eventually become the Crimson Dawn syndicate. Read more here.
Ahsoka Season 2
Filming for Ahsoka’s sophomore outing doesn’t kick off until the end of April, but creator Dave Filoni had some concept art to show off (Chopper with a gun!!). He also discussed the impact Ray Stevenson’s death in 2023 had on the future of Baylan Skoll, who will now be played by Rory McCann in the new season.
Star Wars: Zero Company
If you’ve been playing recent Star Wars games and wished they had more strategy, Zero Company is for you. Developed by new studio Bit Reactor, players will take on the role of Hawks, the leader of the titular elite outfit made up of a motley crew. Your team will go on missions throughout the Clone Wars and make decisions expected to reverberate throughout the rest of the game. Expect that to drop sometime in 2026. Watch the trailer and read some insight from the developer here. You can also read io9’s full interview with the developers here.
Yaaaargh, Outlaws Is Getting Hondo
Still playing Star Wars Outlaws? If so, you’ll be pleased to hear the second DLC story, “A Pirate’s Fortune,” is hitting in May and will see Kay cross paths with Hondo Ohnaka. The game is also coming to the Nintendo Switch 2 in the fall, all of which you can read about here.
Star Wars Returns to Fortnite
The dead aren’t speaking this time, but there’ll be plenty of shooting in Fortnite’s next big IP tie-in. The five-week “Galactic Battle” season will have new events and in-game items for players to buy based on the Prequel, Original, and New Republic eras, and also bring in Darth Jar Jar. Read more here.
More Star Wars Toys and Books
For the collectors, Celebration had plenty of new stuff you’ll want to spend money on. Toy fans already knew about some Black Series figures and Lego sets, and Hasbro had some new Black and Vintage Collection toys for characters from Star Wars Jedi, The Bad Batch, and more. If you’re more artistically minded, you’ll be pleased to hear art books for Andor and the manga version of A New Hope are coming in the future.
The Ghibli Collaboration
You may not have known it was there, but Studio Ghibli had a selection of Star Wars-themed art at Celebration Japan. You can see the gallery here, which combines ideas and images from the franchise with the animation studio’s well-known work, including Princess Mononoke and Porco Rosso.
Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run
Since they’ve got a movie coming up, Mando and Grogu are taking over the Disney theme park attraction in 2026 and teaming with the iconic ship to steal some Imperial remnants. During its panel at Celebration Japan, we learned Smugglers Run will take attendees to the city-planet of Coruscant and let them choose their destination…provided the person doing the choosing is an Engineer. Read more about what that entails here.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
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