Watch the Star Wars movies in order From The Phantom Menace to The Rise of Skywalker (Image: © Jonathan Olley/Lucasfilm ) Show
If you're wanting to watch the Star Wars movies in order but are feeling more than a little confused about where to start and how to progress through the franchise, rest assured, you've come to the right place. While it used to be easy to figure out the order in which to watch these action-packed films, the Star Wars movie franchise has now grown to include three trilogies plus a few spin-offs and side-stories thrown into the mix for good measure. Oh, and let's not forget the TV shows, books and comics, which can make exploring George Lucas's far, far away galaxy seem rather daunting to a newcomer. The good news is, it doesn't have to be that way. Granted, the best Disney Plus shows, (which include The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, with popular The Madalorian season 3 set to be released towards the end of this year), have certainly made figuring out how to watch these movies in order a little more complex, but with a little expert knowledge, you'll be kicking back with this exciting franchise in no time. For those of you who are purists, getting to watch the Star Wars movies in order is probably going to be your preference. On the other hand, if you're someone that likes to mix things up a bit, there's no reason why you can't go in release order and enjoy the adventure that way. To be honest, as long as you have one of the best TVs that delivers outstanding picture performance, you really can't go wrong no matter what way around you choose to do things. Whether you decide to watch the Star Wars movies in order or by release date, this in-depth guide explains how to do just that, including an overview of how the movies and TV shows fit together, and various sequences to watch them in. Ready to journey to a galaxy far, far away? Let's do it! How to watch Star Wars movies in chronological orderA long time ago, it was easy to know how to watch the Star Wars movies in order – until 1999, all of the movies fit into the timeline of a galaxy far, far away in the order they landed in theaters. Then the Prequel Trilogy made things more complicated, by going back in time to tell the story of Anakin Skywalker before he became Darth Vader. These days, the first Star Wars movie ever released (A New Hope) is actually the fourth movie in the Skywalker Saga. (The Skywalker Saga is the term Lucasfilm uses to describe Episodes I-IX, in which Anakin Skywalker and his descendants have considerable influence over the galaxy.) Meanwhile, the fourth movie to hit cinemas (The Phantom Menace) comes first in chronological order. And when you add the standalone Solo: A Star Wars Story and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story into the list, A New Hope actually becomes the sixth movie in the overall chronology. Got all that? You'll find every live-action Star Wars movie to date in the list below – all nine Episodes of the Skywalker Saga, and Solo: A Star Wars Story and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. We've used A New Hope as an anchor point in the timeline, which tends to be how the timeline is measured officially in the fictional universe – in-universe dates are traditionally listed relative to the Battle of Yavin, the assault on the Death Star that closes A New Hope. You'll only find live-action Star Wars movies on this list, which is why you can't see 2008 Clone Wars movie – while it got a theatrical release, it was effectively a pilot for the long-running TV show with delusions of grandeur. As such, it doesn't really work in isolation. If you'd like a Star Wars viewing order with the canon TV shows thrown in, including The Mandalorian, we've got that, too: you'll find our Star Wars Ultimate Order list further down this page. For now, however, the movies will make a fun binge on a rainy weekend – especially as they're easily viewable on Disney Plus. Here's how to watch the Star Wars movies in order:
How to watch Star Wars movies in release orderWatching the Star Wars movies in release order isn't necessarily the optimal way to follow the story of the saga – though, for anyone who's yet to watch the Original Trilogy, the big reveals (you know the ones we mean, Luke...) do work best if you're not familiar with the events of the Prequel Trilogy. Either way, this list might be handy to know as you assemble your own personal chronology with Star Wars. Here's how to watch the Star Wars movies in release order, going back a remarkable 44 years to A New Hope in 1977.
The ultimate Star Wars viewing order, including TV showsStar Wars isn't just about the movies. In fact, the so-called Expanded Universe has been growing ever since Alan Dean Foster wrote the first Star Wars spin-off novel, Splinter of the Mind's Eye, in 1978. Over the subsequent decades, Lucasfilm produced books, comics and cartoons such as Ewoks, Droids and the original Star Wars: Genndy Tartakovsky’s 2D-animated Clone Wars series, to add to what we'd seen on the big screen. When Disney acquired Lucasfilm and the Star Wars rights from George Lucas in 2012, however, it reset the Expanded Universe continuity. This old Expanded Universe material was rebranded under the ‘Legends’ banner, with only the Prequel Trilogy, Original Trilogy and The Clone Wars CG-animated series remaining part of official canon. Disney has added significantly to that canon since, with most new books, games, comics and TV series (such as Rebels, Resistance, The Mandalorian and The Bad Batch) existing in the same official continuity as the Star Wars movies. This list below doesn't feature everything, but it'll certainly keep you busy – it's pretty much every existing movie and TV show collated into one canonical order. We've included upcoming Disney Plus Star Wars shows like Obi-Wan Kenobi – which revealed a new behind-the-scenes teaser at Disney Plus Day in November 2021 – The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka and Andor for reference (highlighted in italicsbelow), though at this stage, their exact position in the timeline is TBC.
The existing Star Wars TV shows fill important gaps in the saga's canon. The Clone Wars slots in between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, detailing the conflict between the Republic and the Separatists prior to Anakin Skywalker's fall from grace. Spin-off series The Bad Batch is set in the aftermath of Revenge of the Sith, as the galaxy comes to terms with the rise of the Empire – if you've ever wondered why Clone Troopers became Stormtroopers, this is the show for you. Star Wars: Rebels works as a prequel series to A New Hope, telling the story of the early days of the Rebel Alliance, while Star Wars: Resistance plays a similar function leading into the events of The Force Awakens. The first live-action TV series, The Mandalorian, is set about five years after Return of the Jedi, in a lawless, post-Empire galaxy. The Book of Boba Fett is set immediately after the events of The Mandalorian. A common thread linking The Clone Wars, Rebels and The Mandalorian is Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker's former Jedi apprentice – and a key figure in the formation of the Rebel Alliance. She's arguably the most important Star Wars character never to have appeared in one of the Skywalker Saga movies. In terms of how future Star Wars shows will fit into this viewing order, Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi is set 10 years after Revenge of the Sith – so, reasonably close to the timeframe of Solo. Meanwhile, Andor – a spin-off from Rogue One, centered on Rebel operative Cassian Andor – is set five years before that film, meaning it's pretty close to the era of Rebels. Perhaps we'll even see some characters crossing over between the shows? A spin-off focused on the galaxy’s favorite scoundrel, Lando Calrissian, is also in the works, but it's unclear exactly when that's going to be set. Our guess is it'll be connected to the Solo movie in some way – before Lando took control of Cloud City – but we can't be sure right now. We're not even sure if Donald Glover is reprising his role as the young Lando. We expect The Mandalorian spin-off Ahsoka to be set in a similar period to the parent show. (Another proposed Mando spin-off announced in late 2020, Rangers of the New Republic, is now apparently on hold.) The Acolyte will be set in the High Republic era, a couple of centuries before The Phantom Menace – while this period in galactic history has featured in several novels and comics, The Acolyte will mark its first appearance on screen. Star Wars anime series Visions (which debuted in September 2021) isn't part of official canon – each of the animation studios involved was given the freedom to tell their own story, outside the constraints of existing continuity. Star Wars: The Machete Order explainedThe Machete Order is a well-known viewing order created by Rod Hilton (opens in new tab) in 2011. It's a way of watching the Star Wars movies without The Phantom Menace, essentially, and shifts how the story is told. It focuses entirely on Luke Skywalker's story, with the idea being that it preserves The Empire Strikes Back's big Darth Vader-shaped twist. Missing Episode I is no bad thing, right? The Machete Order starts with A New Hope, moves on to The Empire Strikes Back, then the first two prequels are watched as a flashback to Anakin's story, before returning to the final battle in Return of the Jedi. It's definitely more of an acquired taste than the other Star Wars lists here, but it's worth a look.
To continue the Machete Order from there, watch the sequel saga, too:
What's the best Star Wars order?While there's a strong argument for watching the Original Trilogy followed by Prequel Trilogy to preserve those aforementioned big reveals – especially for anyone who grew up on the original movies – chronological viewing is the best, and most logical, Star Wars viewing order for most people. For one thing, it doesn't take as long to watch as the Ultimate Order, which requires an enormous time commitment that'll be rather too much for more casual viewers. Eleven movies is enough for a solid Star Wars marathon, and the two spin-offs, Rogue One and Solo, add texture to the universe that you won't necessarily get from the main Star Wars movies. Then, if you've got the time, adding the TV shows allows for an even deeper dive into the mythology of that galaxy far, far away. Star Wars movies on Disney PlusDisney Plus (opens in new tab) now has every Star Wars movie available to stream, including The Rise of Skywalker and Solo. These are the Star Wars movies currently available on Disney Plus:
Note that this only applies to Disney Plus in the US, UK and Australia, and that the selection might vary where you are. If you're wondering what other Star Wars shows and various bits of content are on Disney Plus, here's a list of other stuff you can watch on the streamer that's connected to the saga – whether it's a Lego adventure (such as the new Halloween-themed Terrifying Tales), or behind-the-scenes documentaries about the making of The Mandalorian, or the origins and history of Boba Fett. Live action:
2D animation:
3D animation:
Behind the scenes:
The best Star Wars movies, rankedWant to see the Star Wars movies ranked? Below, we've done just that, based on IMDb user scores. We don't think all of the calls below make a whole lot of sense, but that's the price of a public vote – surely no movie featuring the word 'Younglings' (aka Revenge of the Sith) is better than The Last Jedi. And it's impossible to argue with the top two.
Richard is a freelance journalist specialising in movies and TV, primarily of the sci-fi and fantasy variety. An early encounter with a certain galaxy far, far away started a lifelong love affair with outer space, and these days Richard's happiest geeking out about Star Wars, Star Trek, Marvel and other long-running pop culture franchises. In a previous life he was editor of legendary sci-fi magazine SFX, where he got to interview many of the biggest names in the business – though he'll always have a soft spot for Jeff Goldblum who (somewhat bizarrely) thought Richard's name was Winter. In che ordine guardare i film di Star Wars?Partendo dai classici episodi IV, V, VI e proseguendo con I,II,III e poi i più recenti VII, VIII, XI. Ecco la lista in ordine cronologico di uscita al cinema: Guerre stellari (Episodio IV: Una nuova speranza) (1977) L'Impero colpisce ancora (Episodio V) (1980)
Qual è il primo film della saga di Star Wars?Star Wars: Episodio IV – Una nuova speranza (1977)
L'origine del mito, e primo film di "Star Wars": tutto il resto, in pratica, è costruito attorno a quello che succede in "Una Nuova Speranza", sotto forma di sequel, prequel e spin-off.
Quanti film ha la saga di Star Wars?In totale la Saga di Star Wars è composta da 11 film: tre formano la Trilogia Originale, tre la Trilogia Prequel, tre la Trilogia Sequel e due spin off. Se non consideriamo quest'ultimi, abbiamo 9 film.
Qual è il miglior film di Star Wars?E, per la milionesima volta, Episodio V: L'Impero colpisce ancora rimane il miglior film di Star Wars.
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