Spanning 12 live-action feature films and six live-action TV shows (and counting), the “Star Wars” universe is ever-expanding. And starting with the very first installment, filmmaker George Lucas made clear to audiences that he was telling a saga out of order. The title “Episode IV: A New Hope” underlined there was both a past and a future beyond the 1977 film, and indeed this saga has moved forward and backward in time throughout its history, telling a number of different kinds of stories in a galaxy far, far away.
To that end, whether you’re new to the franchise or hold it dear as a favorite film series, you may be looking for a way to watch all the “Star Wars” movies in order. From young Anakin Skywalker to Rey Palpatine, we’ve got the full story in order below.
But not just that – we also weave in how to watch the “Star Wars” shows in order, and for the hardcore fans, how to watch the movies and shows together in order. And even an update on all the new “Star Wars” movies and TV shows currently in the works.
“Star Wars” Movies in Chronological Order
Chronologically, the “Star Wars” story begins with George Lucas’ 1999 prequel “The Phantom Menace,” which introduced audiences to young Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) before chronicling his turn to the Dark Side (later played by Hayden Christensen). The episodic entries make the chronological order easy, but you also have to factor in the spinoffs “Solo” and “Rogue One.” All together, this makes for a complete (and time-intensive) marathon.
Here’s a rundown of the “Star Wars” movies in chronological order.
- “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace”
- “Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones”
- “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith”
- “Solo: A Star Wars Story”
- “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
- “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope”
- “Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back”
- “Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi”
- “The Mandalorian and Grogu”
- “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”
- “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”
- “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”
“Star Wars” Movies in Release Order
Of course, you can also watch the “Star Wars” movies in the order in which they were released, which is how most fans came to the franchise. At least at first. From Lucas’ first six installments to the Disney era, here’s a list of the “Star Wars” films in release order.
- “Star Wars: A New Hope” (1977)
- “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” (1980)
- “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” (1983)
- “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” (1999)
- “Star Wars: Attack of the Clones” (2002)
- “Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith” (2005)
- “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” (2015)
- “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” (2016)
- “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” (2017)
- “Solo: A Star Wars Story” (2018)
- “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” (2019)
- “The Mandalorian and Grogu” (2026)
What’s the best way to watch the “Star Wars” movies in order?
This is an age-old question — is it better to watch the “Star Wars” movies in chronological or release order? While watching them in chronological order is a fun exercise, there are a couple of main drawbacks: One, the prequels pale in quality when compared to the original trilogy so you’re slogging through some fairly intergalactic politics and stilted acting. And two: The added context from the original trilogy makes the Anakin saga much more tragic (and interesting) than watching his downfall in a vacuum.
Here’s my recommendation: If it’s your first time watching “Star Wars,” watch them in release order. If you’ve seen most or all of the movies before, watch them in chronological order for fun.
So the best way to watch the “Star Wars” movies is arguably to watch in release order. This is how they were made, and also avoids the jarring effect of going from the prequels to the recent spinoffs back to George Lucas’ original trilogy.
“Star Wars” Shows in Chronological Order
And then we come to the “Star Wars” TV shows. The first to get off the ground was an animated series called “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” – first in 2003, as a show from Genndy Tartakovsky, and then in 2008, as a different animated “Clone Wars” series from Dave Filoni. Then, of course, in the Disney era, we have the live-action shows and the animated series “Star Wars Rebels,” which all take place before “The Force Awakens.”
“The Acolyte” is set in the oldest era, 100 years before the events of “The Phantom Menace,” then “Obi-Wan Kenobi” takes place 10 years before “A New Hope,” and “Andor” and “Star Wars Rebels” take place during the lead-up to “A New Hope,” while “The Mandalorian” picks up five years after “Return of the Jedi.”
We’re leaving out the more minor shows like “Ewoks” (yes, there was an animated “Ewoks” series) to keep it to the shows that have the biggest connections to the “Star Wars” saga. So below, here are the “Star Wars” shows in chronological order.
- “The Acolyte”
- “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”
- “Obi-Wan: Kenobi”
- “Andor”
- “Star Wars Rebels”
- “The Mandalorian” Seasons 1-2
- “Star Wars: Skeleton Crew”
- “The Book of Boba Fett”
- “The Mandalorian” Season 3
- “Ahsoka”
“Star Wars” Shows in Release Order
You can also just watch the “Star Wars” shows in the order in which they were released to see the progression of investment from Disney and Lucasfilm, especially as “The Mandalorian” rose to popularity.
- “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (2008 – 2020)
- “Star Wars Rebels” (2014 – 2018)
- “The Mandalorian” (2019 – present)
- “The Book of Boba Fett” (2021)
- “Obi-Wan Kenobi” (2022)
- “Andor” (2022)
- “Ahsoka” (2023)
- “The Acolyte” (2024)
- “Skeleton Crew” (2024)
How to watch the “Star Wars” movies and shows in chronological order
If you want to get really nerdy, here’s the complete chronological “Star Wars” timeline of how to watch all the movies and TV shows in order of events.
- “The Acolyte”
- “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace”
- “Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones”
- “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”
- “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith”
- “Obi-Wan Kenobi”
- “Solo: A Star Wars Story”
- “Andor”
- “Star Wars Rebels”
- “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
- “Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope”
- “Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back”
- “Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi”
- “The Mandalorian”
- “The Book of Boba Fett”
- “Ahsoka”
- “The Mandalorian and Grogu”
- “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”
- “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”
- “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”
Upcoming “Star Wars” Movies
On the film side, things have been quiet but are starting to heat up.
“The Mandalorian & Grogu” hit theaters on May 22, 2026. The film is a big-screen continuation of the “Mandalorian” saga with Jon Favreau directing a story that takes place right after the events of Season 3.
Next is “Star Wars: Starfighter,” a new film starring Ryan Gosling from director Shawn Levy that hits theaters on May 28, 2027. It’s a largely standalone story set after the events of “The Rise of Skywalker.”
“The movie is a new adventure. It’s new characters,” Levy said at Star Wars Celebration 2025. “It takes place in a new period of time after the battle of Exegol, after episode nine.”
Then there’s an untitled film that will feature the return of Daisy Ridley as Rey, as announced at Star Wars Celebration in April 2023. This film had been in the works for quite a while, with Damon Lindelof and Justin Britt-Gibson writing the screenplay and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy attached to direct. Lindelof and Britt-Gibson were fired from the project in early 2023, and afterwards “Peaky Blinders” and “Spencer” scribe Steven Knight was tapped to work on the script.
This new Rey movie will take place some time after the events of “Rise of Skywalker” and find her shepherding a new era for the Jedi. But there have been no new updates for quite some time, and the movie doesn’t have a release date, so there’s no guarantee it will be made.
There are also several other “Star Wars” movies in the works, some of which may actually happen.
Dave Filoni, long a fixture in the “Star Wars” universe with shows like “The Clone Wars” and “Star Wars Rebels,” is supposed to be directing his first live-action film. The movie is set before the events of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and is expected to draw together the various characters and plot threads from the live-action TV shows he’s been helping to spearhead with Jon Favreau, including “The Mandalorian” and “Ahsoka.”
Another new “Star Wars” movie announced at Star Wars Celebration is a film set in the distant past in the “Star Wars” universe, to be directed by “Logan” and “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” filmmaker James Mangold. Set 25,000 years in the past, the film chronicles the dawning of the Force and will be an origin story of sorts for the entire “Star Wars” universe. Mangold is writing the screenplay himself.
And Taika Waititi is writing and directing a “Star Wars” movie of his own, which is still in development.
Lucasfilm had intended for a new movie called “Rogue Squadron,” directed by Patty Jenkins and following a squadron of X-Wing fighters, to be the next “Star Wars” movie released in 2023. But that film was pulled from the schedule following delays and ultimately never happened. Jenkins now says the film is still in the works.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige was producing a new film being written by “Loki” and “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” screenwriter Michael Waldron, but that project has been scrapped.
