Star Wars: Skeleton Crew co-creator Christopher Ford has explained why the upcoming Disney+ series take place during the New Republic era.
Skeleton Crew is set a few years after the events of the 1983 film Return of the Jedi. This places it in the same timeframe as fellow Disney+ series The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka. The upcoming Star Wars series centers on a group of children who get lost in the galaxy far, far away and must find their way home. According to Ford, this premise likely wouldn’t have worked in a show set during the Galactic Empire’s reign.
“For us, it was a great era because as much as the New Republic is trying to bring things back, it’s a kind of lawless, wild time,” Ford said in a video interview with Entertainment Weekly. “So, there’s kind of a lot of danger. If we had set it earlier, the kids would have, you know, maybe just met the Empire and just got– just shut down … So, this is more of a galaxy to get lost in.”
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew is expected to premiere in 2023
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew is created by Ford alongside MCU Spider-Man trilogy director Jon Watts. The series stars veteran actor Jude Law as a mysterious Jedi. Its cast also includes Ravi Cabot-Conyers, Kyriana Kratter, Robert Timothy Smith, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Tunde Adebimpe, Kerry Condon, and Jaleel White.
While a premiere date has not yet been announced, Skeleton Crew is expected to arrive on Disney+ later this year — likely in either November or December. It would be the third live-action Star Wars series to hit the platform in 2023. The Mandalorian Season 3 ran from March to April, while the spinoff limited series Ahsoka is set to debut on Aug. 23.
