After doing spinoff series proposal articles for Harry Potter and Middle Earth, it'd be criminal not to cover Star Wars as well. Like Potter, Tolkien, Marvel, and DC, there are more than enough stories and characters to support a shared universe. Now that Disney owns "Star Wars" and is planning both a sequel trilogy and standalone films, I think it's a perfect time to speculate what those standalone films could be. Now, fun fact. When George Lucas saw the success of Episode IV, he planned out a total of 12 films-three trilogies charting the Skywalker Family, and a trilogy of spinoffs. He whittled it down to nine, then three, then bumped it back up to six.
Ironically, Disney's now fulfilling Lucas's original promise of a total of nine Episodes along with spinoffs. But Star Wars now has an entire Expanded Universe to draw from for films. Everything post-VI may now be non-canon (or is it?), but everything before and during the first two trilogies is ripe for adaptation. So I've cherry picked some of the best EU stories and concepts, and mapped out a series of nine spinoff films, divided into three trilogies. Like my other proposals, the number of films here mirrors the number of existing films (or soon to be existing). With one exception, all of these films are set before or in-between Episodes I-VI, just because I don't know how much of the EU will remain canon once VII comes out. So sorry EU fans, no Thrawn Trilogy adaptation. Anyway, let's begin.
1. Dawn of the Jedi- The first trilogy is set thousands of years before Episode I, and focuses on the origins of the Star Wars universe. The first film will explore the origins of the Jedi and Sith orders, the discovery of the Light and Dark Sides of the Force, the invention of the Lightsaber, and the creation of the Republic. The focus would be the Force Wars which began on the planet Tython, where philosophers and warriors from across the galaxy gather to study the Force.
As they study and harness it, more militant factions create prototype lightsabers (complete with proton-pack like devices which charge them). Years pass, and these first Force users develop lightsaber wielding techniques, while swearing oaths to only use the Force in defense of innocents. Others become tempted by the Dark Side, and fight their counterparts for control of Tython. Eventually, the proto-Jedi banish their evil brethren to the planet Korriban/Moraband, where they establish the order of the Sith Lords and plot their revenge. The film would end with the establishment of the Galactic Republic on Coruscant, with the newly formed Jedi Order swearing fealty to them.
2. Knights of the Old Republic- Picking up a few thousand years later, KOTR would adapt the popular video games of the same name. Darth Revan would be the main character, a Sith Lord who gets amnesia and begins the film as a Jedi. He assumes he's been a Jedi all his life, and remembers being a Jedi Knight in the great Mandalorian Wars (the culture Boba and Jango Fett come from). He wears a Mandalorian mask as a trophy from those wars. However, there's a huge gap of time that he can't remember. He falls in love with fellow Jedi Bastila Shan and befriends Republic officer Carth Onasi, and also keeps the assassin droid HK-47 as company. After encountering Darth Malak, Revan realizes Malak was his best friend and former Sith apprentice.
Following the Mandalorian Wars, Revan and Malak ventured into Unknown Space tracking a mysterious Sith presence. Revan and Malak found the Sith Lords they thought defeated long ago have reconstituted a Sith Empire out of Korriban. They were swayed by the Dark Side and became Sith Lords themselves, sent as advance agents to prepare for a Sith Invasion. However, Malak betrayed Revan and wiped his memory, taking control of the Sith forces in the Jedi Civil War. Finding redemption through Shan's love, Revan races to retrieve an ancient pre-Republic superweapon called the Star Forge before Malak can get to it. This film would be incredibly large in scale and feature the first onscreen battles between armies of Jedi and Sith. Revan's story is incredibly cinematic, and it'd be a delight to see it come to life on the silver screen.
3. Bane of the Sith- This film is set exactly 1,000 years before Episode I, and in many ways directly sets up the events of the Skywalker Saga. Over thousands of years, the Jedi and Sith continue to wage war. Whenever the Jedi believe the Sith defeated, they simply gather more power and emerge with stronger armies. The latest war finds the Sith nearly triumphant, with over half the galaxy in their grasp. Among them is Darth Bane, an ambitious, high ranking Sith Lord who believes the Sith will never gain full power as long as their armies are plagued by infighting. He has a radical new idea that the Sith Order should only consist of two people-a Master and an Apprentice. Convinced his Rule of Two will ensure the true survival and eventual dominance of the Sith Order, Bane prepares a powerful Force Weapon that will annihilate the Sith Army.
Meanwhile, the Jedi become increasingly militant, and act as the Republic's armed forces. The senators are all but stripped of their political power as a result of the war. A group of senators propose reforming the Republic so power is returned to the people, with the Jedi becoming Keepers of the Peace. The Jedi Army recruits a young Force User named Zannah into their ranks, and eventually the Jedi and Sith clash on the planet Rusaan. When the conflict becomes too chaotic, Bane assumes leadership of the Sith Army and negotiates a temporary ceasefire.
Bane leads the Sith into one of Rusaan's many cave systems and detonates his weapon-the Force Bomb, a bubble of concentrated Force energy which, once detonated, obliterates all living things in the vicinity. The Jedi witness the bomb's detonation, and after inspecting the area, declare the Sith Order extinct. The Republic undergoes massive reforms, and the Jedi agree to strip themselves of their military powers. In secret, Bane survives, and finds the abandoned Zannah and takes her as his new apprentice. He promises that one day, the Sith will have their vengeance on the Jedi Order and emerge as the Galaxy's true rulers.
4. The Tragedy of Plagueis- The second spinoff trilogy focuses on various Jedi and Sith as they weave throughout the Skywalker Saga. The first installment focuses on the Sith. This would be a direct prequel and sidequel to Episode I, leading up to and taking place during said film. It would detail the plans of Darth Plagueis, the heir of Darth Bane's Rule of Two order, as he trains Palpatine and uses his political connections to make Palpatine a senator. He hopes to have Palpatine elected Chancellor, secretly guiding him into exterminating the Jedi and installing the Galactic Empire.
Plagueis begins experimenting with the Force, flooding the galaxy with Dark Side energy in an attempt to create and extend life. Ultimately, Plagueis wishes to create the long prophesied Chosen One, twisting this person into a weapon to help rule the galaxy. Through Plagueis's guidance and influence, Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas commissions the Clone Army on Kamino. Palpatine then convinces Sifo-Dyas's good friend Count Dooku to kill him, using Sifo-Dyas as a cover to continue the Clone project. Dooku erases Kamino from the Jedi Archives, and quits the Jedi Order.
Plagueis oversees Palpatine training Darth Maul, and helps Palpatine get nominated for Chancellor during the Naboo Crisis. Plagueis also learns of Anakin Skywalker, and theorizes he could have been conceived by the Force during one of his many experiments. A vision convinces him Anakin will change history, so he becomes determined to keep Anakin away from the Jedi. He tells Palpatine to guide the boy should the Jedi train Anakin.
On the eve of his election, Palpatine figures that Plagueis has outlived his usefulness. He gets his Master intoxicated and violently kills him in his sleep with a torrent of force lightning. Soon afterwards, Palpatine learns of Darth Maul's death on Naboo, and recruits the now exiled Count Dooku as his next apprentice, Darth Tyrannus, while secretly waiting to corrupt Anakin so he can be his next apprentice. The film will have a more "Game of Thrones" feel to it with the political machinations, and will clear up any mysteries left hanging by the prequels.
5. The Dark Times- Since the first film in the second spinoff trilogy focused on the Sith Lords, this one would focus on a Jedi. Specifically, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Since a good chunk of his life was covered in the prequels, this film would focus on Kenobi as a hermit in between Episodes III and IV. He'd begin the film meditating with Qui-Gon Jinn's spirit, and reminiscing about key moments from his past. Among these moments: Young Kenobi training with Yoda and then Qui-Gon, Adult Kenobi training kid Anakin, and Kenobi helping Senator Bail Organa during a Clone Wars skirmish. Kenobi would think about his past mistakes, and feel guilty for Anakin's corruption.
To keep a young Luke safe, Kenobi sets out to take down a growing army of Tusken Raiders, who are raiding several homesteads. There'd be a western/Samurai feel, much like the films Lucas first drew on for the original trilogy. Kenobi learns that the Raiders are being led by a surviving Jedi, A'Sharad Hett, and eventually duels him to make him remember the ways of the Jedi. When Kenobi encounters a young Luke, Owen Lars warns him never to set foot on their property again, citing his belief that Anakin should never have abandoned his mother to go with Kenobi to be a Jedi. While the film will have space battles and lightsaber duels, this one is meant to be a quieter character piece, focusing solely on Kenobi's transition from Clone Wars legend to the old man from Episode IV.
6. The Force Unleashed- So since we got a Sith movie followed by a Jedi movie, I figured we need a film that strikes a balance between Light and Dark. What better story than The Force Unleashed, since Starkiller's story is ripe for a cinematic take. To be clear, I mean the first game, as I hate the second one with a burning passion and disregard it as canon. Anyway, players of the game should be familiar with the story. Darth Vader takes in a young Force User, Galen Maarek, and raises him as his secret apprentice Starkiller, helping to exterminate any Jedi who survived the Purge. Starkiller is eventually ordered to round up the members of the Senate who oppose the Emperor, for Vader to execute.
When Starkiller is betrayed by Vader, he rallies the Senators into forming the Rebel Alliance, using his old family crest as their symbol. A final duel with Vader and the Emperor leads to Starkiller's death, with him becoming a martyr for the fledgling Rebellion. Since "The Dark Times" is set entirely on Tatooine, this film would act as a better transition between the originals and prequels, and deliver more characterization for Vader and Palpatine. Starkiller's redemptive arc is emotional enough to transfer to the screen, and the name recognition from a popular video game would ensure success (much like Knights of the Old Republic).
7. The Smuggler's Run- This will be the first in a trilogy on the Star Wars underworld. No Jedi or Sith, just smugglers and bounty hunters. My first film is a Han Solo origins story, as blasphemous as that seems. In this film, Han would begin as a member of the Imperial Academy. He'd get kicked out after saving the enslaved Wookie Chewbacca. For this, Chewie owes Han a life debt and swears to accompany him. Needing a ship, Han and Chewie win the Millenium Falcon from Lando Calrissian in a game of Sabaac, and begin a smuggling career. They end up smuggling a huge amount of spice from the Kessel Mines for Jabba the Hutt. To evade Imperial ships, Han and Chewie take the infamous Kessel Run, a dangerous space route. They cut down on both time and distance by flying closer to the black hole cluster throughout the Run, making the delivery successfully. If an actor was found who could capture the charisma of a younger Han, I see no reason why this wouldn't work as a film.
8. The Mandalorian Contract- As much as I love Han as a character, I don't want to focus more than one installment on him. Instead, I'd rather focus on Boba Fett, and give some depth to the elusive bounty hunter. Since Episode II was his origins film, this film would take place sometime after III. Boba is already a grown man, who returns to his home planet of Mandalore to learn more of his warrior culture. He dons the iconic green Mandalorian armor, and sets out to become the galaxy's most famous bounty hunter. The film could even intersect with "Smuggler's Run", with Boba tracking down Han at one point to collect a bounty. His arc would be trying to step out of his father's shadow, and become more than just Jango's clone. To do this, he will never take off his helmet, since he hates being reminded of what he is. If the new "Dredd" movie could make it work, I'm sure Boba can do it too. Han Solo showed the smuggler's world, so Boba Fett will dive into both Mandalorian culture and the world of bounty hunters, making for a gritty yet entertaining film.
9. A New Bounty- I said at the beginning that there'd be one exception to my spinoff timeline, that being this film. Since Disney is going forward with the Skywalker Saga, I figure the spinoffs should go forward too. This would be a sequel to "Contract", again focusing on Boba. However, while the first film was a younger Boba trying to establish a rep, this one has an older Boba re-establishing it. The film would open with his escape from the Sarlaac Pit, thus a post-Episode VI setting. Finding his rep's been damaged after word of his "death" spread, Boba sets out for a major job that'll reassert his position as the galaxy's best bounty hunter. Only problem is, with Jabba the Hutt dead and the Empire defeated, most of his contacts are dried up. Boba is forced to find work with the Black Sun Organization, sort of like the Galactic Mafia. They're competing against remnants of the Empire for smuggling routes.
To ensure Black Sun gets those routes, Fett has to take out an Imperial officer who controls one of the few remaining Imperial Star Destroyers. Honestly, this entire plot could be undone depending on what direction Abrams takes for the sequels. However, since I want to set this almost immediately after VI, I don't see it conflicting that much since VII is set 30 years afterwards. Fett could still be alive or have actually died by then, and any Imperial remnants would be disposed of.
I didn't want to propose adapting the Thrawn trilogy, Dark Empire or the Yuuzhan Vong War only because those would majorly impact VII's plot. That is, if they're considered canon. Depending on what VII does, those stories could easily make for future spinoff films. But for right now, I find the pre-Episode I and III-IV gaps more interesting than anything post-VI, hence why these proposals are mined from those eras. This film is an exception because I really wanted to restore Boba Fett's coolness again after VI, and canonize his survival from the Sarlaac. Now that I've done that, I can end my Star Wars spinoff series pitch properly. May the Force Be With You.
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