Nick Hall

How to Watch the Star Wars Movies in Order | Man of Many

ENTERTAINMENT
The original trilogy, which kicked off with the release of the 1977’s retroactively named Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope is the benchmark for modern sci-fi films. The space-age odyssey follows young hero Luke Skywalker and his newly acquired team of misfit rebels Han Solo, R2-D2, Chewbacca and C-3PO as they attempt to free Princess Leia, the leader of the Rebel Alliance from Darth Vader and a powerful weapon created by the Galactic Empire.

Original Series

Legend goes that Lucas had always imagined a set of three prequels to be released retroactively after the first trilogy. In 1999, Lucas’ vision finally hit cinemas with the release of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. While critically panned, the film introduced us to a wealth of new characters, storylines and Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Prequels

In 2015, the third trilogy began with the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. In this series, we see a new order threaten to destroy the New Republic. Familiar characters and new faces collide in this continuation of the classic series.

Sequels

Now, that’s a lot to take it. With three trilogies and wealth of TV shows to get through this May fourth, you might be struggling to know where to begin. Don’t worry, the answer is simple. The best way to watch Star Wars in order is to watch Star Wars in chronological order. Easy, right?

The Best Way to Watch Star Wars Movies in Order – Chronological Order

First episode date: 2024 (USA)
Based on: Star Wars; by George Lucas
Cinematography: James Friend
Created by: Leslye Headland
Original network: Disney+

1. The Acolyte

Release date: 3 June 1999 (Australia)
Director: George Lucas
Box office: 1.027 billion USD
Featured song: Duel of the Fates
Budget: 115 million USD

2. Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)

Release date: 16 May 2002 (Australia)
Director: George Lucas
Box office: $653 million
Budget: 120 million USD
Film series: Star Wars

3. Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002)

First episode date: 29 May 2013
Final episode date: 23 November 2014
Network: Cartoon Network
Genres: Animation, Adventure, Children’s television series, Action fiction

4. Lego Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles (2013 to 2014)

Initial release: 22 July 2011
Director: David Scott
Music composed by: John Williams
Producer: Mark Thorley

5. Lego Star Wars: The Padawan Menace (2011)

Final episode date: 7 March 2014 Trending
First episode date: 3 October 2008
No. of episodes: 131 (list of episodes)
Narrated by: Tom Kane

6. The Clone Wars (2008 to 2014)

7. Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Release date: 19 May 2005 (Australia)
Director: George Lucas
Box office: $868.4 million
$275

8. Star Wars: The Bad Batch (2022-)

Release date: 4 May 2021
Creators: Jennifer Corbett; Dave Filoni
No. of episodes: 16
$275

9. Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

Release date: 24 May 2018 (Australia)
Director: Ron Howard
Box office: 393.2 million USD
$200

10. Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)

First episode date: 27 May 2022
Production location(s): Boston, UK; El Segundo, California; Los Angeles, California
No. of episodes: 6
$200

11. Star Wars Rebels (2014 to 2018)

First episode date: 3 October 2014
Final episode date: 5 March 2018
No. of episodes: 75
$200

12. Andor (2022-present)

First episode date: 21 September 2022 (USA)
Based on: Star Wars; by George Lucas
Cinematography: Adriano Goldman; Frank Lamm; Damián García; Jonathan Freeman
$200
Release date: 15 December 2016 (Australia)
Director: Gareth Edwards
Box office: 1.056 billion USD
Music composed by: Michael Giacchino
Budget: $200-265 million

13. Rogue One (2016)

First episode date: 7 September 1985
Final episode date: 7 June 1986
No. of episodes: 13 (1 Special)
Number of seasons: 1

14. Star Wars: Droids (1985 to 1986)

Release date: 27 October 1977 (Australia)
Director: George Lucas
Budget: 11 million USD
Box office: 775.5 million USD
Music composed by: John Williams

15. Episode IV: A New Hope (1977)

Initial release: 17 November 1978
Director: Steve Binder
First episode date: 17 November 1978
Final episode date: 31 March 1979
Budget: 1 million USD

16. Star Wars: Holiday Special (1978)

Initial release: 26 September 2012
Director: Guy Vasilovich
Casting director: Heidi Klein
Film series: Lego Star Wars

17. Lego Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Out (2012)

Release date: 7 August 1980 (Australia)
Director: Irvin Kershner
Budget: 18 million USD
Box office: 547.9 million USD
Screenplay: Lawrence Kasdan, Leigh Brackett

18. Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Release date: 27 October 1983 (Australia)
Director: Richard Marquand
Initial DVD release: 12 September 2006
Box office: 475.3 million USD
Featured song: Jedi Rocks

19. Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi (1983)

First episode date: 20 June 2016
Final episode date: 16 August 2017
Network: Disney XD

20. Lego Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures (2016 to 2017)

First episode date: 6 July 2015
Final episode date: 2 November 2015
Network: Disney XD

21. Lego Star Wars: Droid Tales (2015)

Release date: 24 November 1985 (Australia)
Director: Ken and Jim Wheats

22. Ewoks (1985 to 1986)

First episode date: 12 November 2019
Production location(s): Los Angeles, California
No. of episodes: 16
Directed by: Dave Filoni; Rick Famuyiwa; Deborah Chow; Bryce Dallas Howard; Taika Waititi

23. The Mandalorian (2019-)

First episode date: 29 December 2021
Production location(s): Los Angeles, California
No. of episodes: 7
Directed by: Robert Rodriguez; Steph Green; Kevin Tancharoen; Bryce Dallas Howard; Dave Filoni

24. The Book of Boba Fett (2021)

Based on: Star Wars; by George Lucas
Cinematography: Eric Steelberg; Quyen Tran
Composer: Kevin Kiner
Genre: Action-adventure; Drama; Science fiction
Original network: Disney+

25. Ahsoka (2023-)

First episode date: 2023 (USA)
Based on: Star Wars; by George Lucas
Created by: Jon Watts; Christopher Ford
Production company: Lucasfilm
Production location: Los Angeles, California

26. Skeleton Crew (2023-)

First episode date: 7 October 2018
Final episode date: 26 January 2020
Composer(s): Michael Tavera; (Based on themes by John Williams)

27. Star Wars: Resistance (2018 to 2020)

First episode date: 15 February 2016
Final episode date: 4 May 2016
Network: Disney XD
Genres: Animation, Short

28. Lego Star Wars: The Resistance Rises (2016)

Release date: 17 December 2015 (Australia)
Director: J.J. Abrams
Box office: 2.066 billion USD
Budget: 306 million USD (2014)

29. Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2016)

Release date: 14 December 2017 (Australia)
Director: Rian Johnson
Box office: 1.321 billion USD
Budget: $200–317 million
Screenplay: Rian Johnson

30. Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (2017)

Release date: 19 December 2019 (Australia)
Director: J.J. Abrams
Box office: $1.074 billion
Budget: 275 million USD
Screenplay: J.J. Abrams, Chris Terrio

31. Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

First episode date: 3 July 2017
No. of episodes: 32 (list of episodes)
Narrated by: Lupita Nyong’o

32. Star Wars: Forces of Destiny (2017 to Present)

If you are looking for a different order to watch Star Wars, you could always go for the original theatrical release order. This sequence involves watching all of the films as they were introduced. While all over the shop, this order can give you a sense of what it was like to view things the first time around. The Star Wars theatrical release order is;

Star Wars Theatrical Release Order

Another popular order to watch Star Wars in is the Machete Order. This sequence was put together by blogger Rod Hilton in 2011. Obviously, due to the age of the post, it doesn’t take into account the more recent sequels, however, it is still a great order. The Machete Order cuts The Phantom Menace entirely and keeps Star Wars’ biggest reveal until the final film. This order works best if you haven’t seen the series before, but nevertheless, it is still a great way to watch the Star Wars movies in order. The Machete Order is;

Star Wars Machete Order

As some of these films are quite old, chances are you might already have them on DVD or Blu-Ray, but if not, don’t stress, you can still stream them all. In Australia, all of the existing Star Wars movies can be streamed on the Disney+ service now.

Where To Watch Star Wars Movies In Chronological Order

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