Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Star Wars: Skeleton Crew
Star Wars needs to stop teasing me with cool X-wing action and finally make Rogue Squadron already. As seen in The Mandalorian and other connected New Republic Era shows, X-wings have briefly been featured from time to time as the New Republic strives to keep the galaxy safe following the fall of the Empire. However, we’re long overdue for the Rogue Squadron movie that was first announced over 4 years ago.
Originally announced in December 2020, Lucasfilm revealed that a Rogue Squadron movie was in development with director Patty Jenkins. An all-new fighter pilot epic featuring a new generation of X-wing pilots in the galaxy far, far away, the movie eventually faced multiple delays before being pulled from Lucasfilm’s release schedule. Now, Star Wars keeps teasing epic X-wing action sequences in its shows, while I’m still waiting for Rogue Squadron to finally happen.
Star Wars’ Mandoverse Shows Keep Teasing X-Wing Action
Skeleton Crew Has Some Great (But Brief) X-Wing Sequences
X-wings have been featured in multiple Star Wars shows in recent years, including The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, and most recently Skeleton Crew. For the most part, The Aldelphi Rangers have been the ones shown piloting these X-wings, having been tasked by the New Republic government with patrolling the Outer Rim. This notably includes Captain Carson Teva (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee), who’s made appearances in nearly all of these shows.
The notable exception is currently Skeleton Crew. While it’s not been confirmed whether the X-wings in Skeleton Crew episode 6 are from Adelphi Base, the X-wings that pursued Jod Na Nawood and the kids aboard The Onyx Cinder appeared to be from Blue Squadron. While there’s certainly still time for Carson Teva or his fellow Rangers to make appearances in upcoming episodes, there have still been some exciting aerial action sequences, with X-wings engaging with various pirate vessels.
“Rangers Of The New Republic” Would’ve Been Perfect
A Cancelled Mandalorian Spin-Off
While the aforementioned X-wing sequences have been fun to see, they are often brief and from a distance, rather than being up close in the action and only sometimes in the cockpit with the pilots themselves. To that end, we would likely have seen even more epic action and focus on the pilots themselves had Rangers of the New Republic not been canceled. Also announced in 2020, Rangers of the New Republic was envisioned as a spin-off series from The Mandalorian that would have made the Aldelphi Rangers leading characters along with the former Rebel shock trooper Cara Dune.
“There’s still hope on the horizon to eventually get what I know can be one of the best Star Wars movies ever…”
However, Lucasfilm and Disney’s decision to fire actress Gina Carano led to the show’s cancelation. While no scripts were written, various elements that had been thought of for the show were incorporated into future seasons of The Mandalorian instead. That said, I still find it very disappointing that a show starring X-wing pilots was canceled, and a movie was put into limbo. However, there’s still hope on the horizon to eventually get what I know can be one of the best Star Wars movies ever.
Forget Rangers: Bring On Rogue Squadron!
(Yes, The Movie Is Currently Still Alive)
Rouge Squadron was indeed pulled from Lucasfilm’s release schedule, having been originally slated for a release date of December 2023. However, Patty Jenkins hasn’t given up on the movie, nor has Lucasfilm. To that end, Jenkins revealed in March 2024 that she had signed a new contract to serve as both writer and director for Rogue Squadron.
Related
Star Wars: Rogue Squadron – Cancelation, Franchise Future & Everything We Know
Patty Jenkins’s Star Wars: Rogue Squadron is reportedly no longer in development, so will there ever be a movie based on stories about X-Wing pilots?
By all accounts, it seems the script is still being written. To that end, one can only hope that all the brief X-wing action teased in the shows will be paid off with a full-fledged Rogue Squadron movie, inspired by classic fighter pilot/dogfight movies like Top Gun. When and if Rogue Squadron finally happens, I’ll be first in line as it’s such a cool concept that Lucasfilm should have fast-tracked. In the meantime, I’ll just have to hope that we get more X-wing action and future appearances from pilots like Carson Teva as Star Wars’ various projects continue.
The first six episodes of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew are now streaming on Disney+.
Set in the Star Wars universe, Skeleton Crew follows four young adventurers as they become lost in the galaxy while searching for their home planet. The series chronicles their exploration and encounters with diverse worlds and characters, presenting themes of friendship, discovery, and the quest for belonging.
- Release Date
-
December 2, 2024
- Character(s)
-
Jod Na Nawood
, Wim
, Fern
, KB
, Neel
, Wendle
, Fara
, SM-33 - Seasons
-
1
- Writers
-
Jon Watts
, Christopher Ford - Directors
-
Jon Watts
, Daniel Kwan
, David Lowery
, Daniel Scheinert
, Jake Schreier - Showrunner
-
Jon Watts
, Christopher Ford
|
Upcoming Star Wars Movies |
Release Date |
|---|---|
|
The Mandalorian & Grogu |
May 22, 2026 |