via MovieStillsDB
Published Jun 21, 2026, 9:00 AM EDT
Sean is a senior writer for ScreenRant and has been writing about new TV releases since December 2023. He has received multiple advance screenings of popular shows and ideated his own coverage read by hundreds of thousands of readers.
Sean is a self-published author of a Western novel. Sean has also written award-winning opinion pieces related to local politics while getting his Bachelor's degree in journalism.
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It's been seven years since the sequel trilogy of Star Wars movies ended with The Rise of Skywalker, and Disney and Lucasfilm are still trying to fix the entire trilogy. The sequel trilogy of Star Wars movies was famously divisive. After The Force Awakens gave the trilogy a relatively popular start, The Last Jedi divided the Star Wars fanbase in half, with some loving and some hating it. Then, The Rise of Skywalker rounded out the trilogy on a decidedly underwhelming note.
Almost as soon as the sequels ended, Star Wars began trying to fix them. The Mandalorian season 2 started diving into Project Necromancer and Palpatine's return just a year after The Rise of Skywalker, which The Bad Batch then took even further in 2021. The rest of the Mandoverse, particularly Ahsoka, dove into the rise of the First Order and the failings of the New Republic. Disney also published dozens of books and comics giving the sequels more context, like The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire, Shadow of the Sith, and The Rise of Kylo Ren.
While Rey, Finn, and Poe haven't appeared in nearly seven years, Star Wars is very far from done with them and their story. Even as the efforts to fix the sequel trilogy have slowed down and the franchise has turned its attention to Din Djarin through The Mandalorian and Grogu, the sequels are still being considered. Now, it's safe to say that Star Wars has never fully given up on the sequel trilogy; in fact, it's doubling down on fixing the movies.
The proof that Star Wars is still trying to fix the sequel trilogy lies in the franchise's slate of upcoming projects. The list of upcoming Star Wars movies are almost all tied to the sequel trilogy in some way. The next film, Star Wars: Starfighter, takes place in the immediate aftermath of The Rise of Skywalker in the Star Wars timeline. New Jedi Order will follow Rey rebuilding the Jedi, and Simon Kinberg's untitled trilogy has been heavily speculated as Episodes X, XI, and XII, which would very overtly continue the sequel trilogy's story.
The only confirmed Star Wars movie that doesn't feed directly into the sequels is James Mangold's Dawn of the Jedi, which takes place tens of thousands of years prior. The television side of the franchise is just as sequel-oriented as well. Ahsoka season 2 will continue to explore the New Republic and explain how the First Order grew from the remnants of the Empire. Even the Star Wars: Visions spinoff The Ninth Jedi is examining a world where the Jedi need to be rebuilt, making it a non-canon version of Rey's upcoming story.
Only Maul - Shadow Lord season 2 isn't related to the sequel trilogy, as it's set in the aftermath of Revenge of the Sith and follows a villain from The Phantom Menace. The vast majority of upcoming Star Wars projects are all related to rehabilitating the sequel trilogy's image in one way or another. At this point, it's safe to say that the immediate future of Star Wars rests in the story of the sequel trilogy.
The Star Wars Sequels Could Be Preparing For A Renaissance Just Like The Prequels Had
All of these upcoming movies and shows that tie into the sequel trilogy could be preparing the way for something of a renaissance like the prequel trilogy had. The prequel trilogy of Star Wars movies was initially widely panned by critics and audiences alike, but over time, they experienced a renaissance. Young fans who saw the films as children grew up and became the dominant voice in the fanbase, online memes helped inspire rewatching the movies with kinder and more nostalgic eyes, and fans were more willing to look past the prequels' faults to find the sprawling political epic at its core.
Most importantly to the prequel renaissance was Star Wars itself. Through shows like The Clone Wars and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars gave the prequels a lot more context and material to work through. The prequels themselves are, admittedly, rather rushed stories that don't have time to dive into the intricacies of Anakin's fall to the dark side or the politics of the galaxy far, far away. The Clone Wars fleshed the prequel era out and retroactively made the films better by giving important pieces like Anakin and the Separatists more nuance and complexity.
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10 Years After The Force Awakens, Star Wars Is Setting Up A New Episode 7
Star Wars: The Force Awakens was first released 10 years ago, with the franchise continuing its setup of a new Episode VII, despite that.
Now, thanks to the upcoming slate of Star Wars movies and shows, the franchise is doing the same for the sequel trilogy. Star Wars has given fans heaps of information explaining Palpatine's return in The Rise of Skywalker, information about the First Order's origins, context for Ben Solo's transformation into Kylo Ren, and much more. Future movies and shows will continue to explore the state of the galaxy after The Rise of Skywalker and make Rey a more fully-developed and complex character.
Side efforts like Ahsoka and Starfighter could end up turning the sequel trilogy from a rushed and disjointed trilogy into a sprawling saga about how the problems of the past never truly die and how the younger generation has to learn to lead while the older generation learns to let go. These upcoming movies and shows could be to the sequels what The Clone Wars was to the prequels: a way to fill in the gaps of the trilogy and make the entire story better and more cohesive.
The sequels also have other things that helped the prequel renaissance along, such as young fans entering adulthood in the 11 years since The Force Awakens and online memes. What separates the sequels from the prequels, however, is that the sequels have a chance to truly continue their story. Rey, Finn, and Poe can return for another trilogy, while Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Padmé could only return for shows. The sequel trilogy of Star Wars movies seems to be the future of the franchise, and it seems to be a very bright future.
Movie(s) Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi, Star Wars: New Jedi Order
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