Disney and Lucasfilm have a perfect Star Wars story staring them in the face, and instead of capitalizing on it, they continue to pretend as though it doesn't even exist. Star Wars is one of the biggest franchises in the world, and has been for the past five decades. Since the original film was released in 1977, the fictional universe has continuously expanded in canon and in Legends, and there are thousands of years of lore that have yet to be explored.
Since The Rise of Skywalker was released in 2019, Disney and Lucasfilm have seemingly tried to tell Star Wars stories set in eras that are outside the Fall of the Jedi and the Reign of the Empire. Projects have still been released within those time periods too, but shows like The Acolyte and Young Jedi Adventures, as well as written media like the High Republic books and comics, have ventured outside of what fans are used to.
However, for some reason, Disney and Lucasfilm refuse to explore the era with the most potential, which is also the era that would almost certainly yield a smash hit, and that is the Old Republic.
Star Wars' Old Republic era became popular in 2003 with the release of the video game titled Knights of the Old Republic. Many fans who afre familiar with the game continue to hold it in high regard, and most argue that it is among the best stories ever told within the galaxy far, far away.
Knights of the Old Republic was so successful that a sequel was created not long after. Then, in 2008, a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG) called Star Wars: The Old Republic was released, and it still has a huge player base today.
While video games in the Old Republic era were created in the 2000s, they are not considered part of Star Wars canon. For years, fans have begged Disney and Lucasfilm to create either a movie trilogy or a Disney+ show set in the Old Republic era, with most wanting it to bring the story of Darth Revan from Knights of the Old Republic to life.
An Old Republic project would be a grand slam for Disney and Lucasfilm. Unless the story was completely changed and butchered, there is literally no way that it could be messed up. The source material is already there for a show or a movie trilogy to follow, and many fans are already foaming at the mouth for it anyway.
If an Old Republic project were to ever be announced, it would most likely be the most viewed Star Wars project of the Disney era. The demand for it is so high, and it continues to grow every year.
However, instead of tapping into this era, Disney and Lucasfilm have decided to go down different routes. For example, the companies debuted a publishing initiative known as the High Republic. It consisted of hundreds of comic books and dozens of novels, as well as other media. The High Republic initiative performed well, but if that treatment had been given to the Old Republic instead of the High Republic, it would have been monumental.
Disney may have even had enough money on its hands from book sales to cover the United States' national debt (not really, but it would have yielded the House of Mouse and Lucasfilm a ridiculous amount of money).
To make things worse, Disney and Lucasfilm confirmed that they were creating a Disney+ project that would have an extremely high budget and be set in an era hundreds of years before the Skywalker Saga. Naturally, fans immediately got excited and wondered if they were referring to the Old Republic.
Unfortunately, they weren't, and were instead talking about The Acolyte. The Acolyte still had a lot of potential, but the execution wasn't there, and Disney found out that it shelled out a ton of money toward a project that was heavily criticized, so The Acolyte was cancelled, even though it was obvious another season was already being planned.
For some reason, it seems as though Disney and Lucasfilm are purposely avoiding the Old Republic, which does not make any sense at all. As mentioned, it could be one of the most profitable stories and eras in all of Star Wars, and would be a great way to get Star Wars back on the right track.
The companies are aware of the hype surrounding characters like Darth Revan. He was included in a LEGO Star Wars project on Disney+, and clearly had a role due to his popularity, so there is no reason for him and his story to remain in Legends.
What Could an Old Republic Star Wars Project Look Like?
Because it is the Old Republic, any method of storytelling would work and effectively bring the story to life. However, it is hard to argue against the idea of an epic movie trilogy. The Old Republic has more fantasy elements in it than other time periods in Star Wars, so the first thing that comes to mind is something like Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy.
If Disney and Lucasfilm created three movies that were around, or over, three hours each, and made it a sprawling epic that covered Darth Revan's life, it could potentially be the greatest piece of Star Wars ever created.
A long-running Disney+ series could work too, but something like the Old Republic demands a high budget and the care that goes into making films.
Star Wars has also had a lot of success in the world of animation, and an animated series would likely do extremely well, but it likely just wouldn't have the same effect and feel as a trilogy of movies.
Disney and Lucasfilm might agree on that and understand that creating something like that would cost a lot of money, which could explain why they haven't pulled the trigger on it yet. Most likely, the films would perform extremely well at the box office and be profitable, but Disney could also simply be worried that they wouldn't and that it would lose a lot financially.
The Old Republic Should Get the High Republic Treatment
As mentioned, Disney and Lucasfilm poured a lot into the High Republic. Between The Acolyte, Young Jedi Adventures, and the publishing initiative, there were so many projects set in the High Republic.
Even if you take Darth Revan and his story out of the equation, an experiment like the one with the High Republic could work extremely well for the Old Republic. Imagine Star Wars releasing multiple comics, novels, and TV shows all set in the Old Republic and just exploring that time period in Star Wars. There are Sith, Jedi, politics, and more that could bring some incredibly compelling tales to the fans.
It is worth noting that Lucasfilm recently announced that an Old Republic video game titled Fate of the Old Republic is in the works. That is at least a step in the right direction, since that game will be exploring the time period and will be led by Knights of the Old Republic director Casey Hudson.
However, it is also important to remember that Lucasfilm announced that a remake of Knights of the Old Republic was in the works and would be released for the PlayStation 5, and that game never actually happened.
Since Fate of the Old Republic is still so far away, it is possible it could suffer the same fate (pun intended) as the Knights of the Old Republic remake. There is a real chance that it could also never be released, and then Star Wars fans would have as much Old Republic content in their hands as they did 10 years ago.
The fact of the matter is, the Old Republic has the most potential of any Star Wars era, and it seems as though Disney and Lucasfilm are ignoring it on purpose. Books, comics, TV shows, movies, even stage plays, if Disney and Lucasfilm wanted to do something like that, could tell stories from the Old Republic.
Disney and Lucasfilm need to capitalize on it. Specifically, Darth Revan's character arc and story from Knights of the Old Republic needs to be told in canon.
