Lucasfilm has announced that, in celebration of the 25th anniversary of “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace” and timed to Star Wars Day (May the 4th), fans will be able to experience the entire Skywalker Saga on the big screen.
That’s right, you’ll be able to watch “Star Wars: The Phantom Menace,” “Star Wars: Attack of the Clones,” “Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith,” “Star Wars: A New Hope,” “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,” “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi,” “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” and “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” on the big screen in one single, nerve-damaging rotation.
If that wasn’t enough the marathon will also include an exclusive first look at “The Acolyte,” the upcoming Disney+ series set 100 years before “The Phantom Menace” in a period of “Star Wars” lore known as the High Republic.
Those attending will also receive a limited edition poster, to remind you of that time you spent a full calendar day in the theater watching “Star Wars” installments.
The “Star Wars” saga kicked off with George Lucas’ groundbreaking original in 1977. Two sequels followed in 1980 (“The Empire Strikes Back”) and 1983 (“Return of the Jedi”). For those of us who grew up in the 1980’s, it felt like that was it for “Star Wars.” Instead, a steady stream of merchandise, spin-off material like the novels and television movies like the two “Ewok” films, plus the animated series “Droids,” would keep us busy.
There would occasionally be a cross-platform event like “Shadows of the Empire” in 1996 that included games, a novel and a video game whose difficult boss fights still haunt us to this day. We imagined a world where “Star Wars” was a single trilogy.
Of course, that all changed when Lucas decided to make the prequel trilogy, which would chart the rise of Anakin Skywalker as he transformed into Darth Vader. Installments would be released in 1999 (“The Phantom Menace”), 2002 (“Attack of the Clones”) and 2005 (“Revenge of the Sith”).
When Lucas sold Lucasfilm (and “Star Wars”) to Disney in 2012, building off of a relationship that had already been established via the Star Tours attraction at various Disney theme parks. Disney quickly got to work on a new series of films that would be released in 2015 (“The Force Awakens”), 2017 (“The Last Jedi”) and 2019 (“The Rise of Skywalker”). They would prove more controversial with fans but just as lucrative in terms of box office.
There were also a pair of “Star Wars Story” films released (“Rogue One” and “Solo”), with Lucasfilm shifting their attention to streaming after the release of “The Rise of Skywalker,” with series like “The Mandalorian,” “The Book of Boba Fett,” “Andor,” “Visions,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” “The Bad Batch” and the upcoming “The Acolyte.”
Get ready to experience the whole shebang on the big screen. Tickets go on sale tomorrow, Friday, March 22, at 9 a.m. PT / 12 p.m. ET.
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