From the Millennium Falcon to the Ghost, Disney’s vision for the new Star Wars franchise is getting clearer as we approach “Episode VII” in 2015.Episode VII”> The film company, which bought Lucasfilm and the rights to Star Wars from George Lucas earlier this year, recently teased “Star Wars Rebels,” the cartoon series, for fans at Star Wars Celebration Europe in Essen, Germany.
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The new series will take place between Star Wars Episodes III and IV during the early days of the Rebellion and the Empire’s quest to hunt down the remaining Jedi across the galaxy. The show’s executive producer, David Filoni—also known for his role as producer with “Star Wars: Clone Wars” on Cartoon Network—gave the estimated 20,000 fans a sneak peak at the show’s artwork and its new ship, the “Ghost,” piloted by the Rebels’ yet-to-be-named protagonist.
"Star Wars Rebels" falls in line with Disney's new ecosystem for the beloved franchise. Following its announcement of "Episode VII," which will be directed by JJ Abrams, Entertainment Weekly reported that Disney plans to produce a Star Wars movie every year starting in 2015. They won't all be sequels like "Episode VIII, IX" and so on, but feature possible side stories, like those of Boba Fett or a young Han Solo.
This is exciting for most fans, but some fear Disney is abusing its new ownership for the almighty dollar. In the case for "Rebels," "The Clone Wars" is good supporting evidence that Star Wars' track record for animated series will uphold quality. Many on the show's team, like Filoni, will have worked on both projects.
"Star Wars Rebels" will debut in 2014 with a premiere on the Disney Channel, and the rest of the season will run on Disney XD, both available though Best Direct TV OffersThe networks are known for more G-rated content but details on any rating for "Rebels" is still unknown.
