Star Wars is officially switching genres this month by exploring a mostly untapped aspect of the galaxy far, far away. While action, family, and drama have been the calling cards of the Star Wars franchise, Lucasfilm's willingness to tap into the horror genre has grown louder. In January 2026, insider Daniel Richtman claimed that a horror Disney+ project under the Star Wars umbrella is in the works, but it's unclear how far along the series is in development. While the wait for on-screen horror is still a while, Star Wars embraced the horror genre with a new 2026 release on September 1: Hiding from the Dark, a novel by New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White.
As the first canon Star Wars horror novel, Hiding from Dark follows Bia Rovyno as she tracks down her mother after she went missing during a business trip. When Bia tries their secret communicator, Imperial agents arrive. While she did try to search for her, her plan was thwarted by Darth Vader's arrival.
Hiding from the Dark portrayed Darth Vader as a terrifying figure, amplifying certain aspects of the Star Wars villain to make him scarier, such as his mechanical breathing, his mask's lifeless eyes, and Force powers. Bia decided to escape, leading her to reconnect with her friend Nerik. Together, they learned that her mother has been secretly aiding the Rebellion, which explains why Vader is intent on bringing her back.
From Bia's perspective (who is clearly unaware of the Force and Darth Vader's long history of killing Jedi), she saw Darth Vader as a presence more horrifying than anything she had encountered, solidifying the Imperial Sith Lord as the nightmare figure of her childhood.
Although Hiding from the Dark is a middle-grade horror story (meaning it is a tamer version than some were hoping for), the novel achieved what many have wanted for a while: showcasing Darth Vader as a haunting, terrifying monster primed to scare children. In a way, this echoes what Anakin Skywalker was to the young Padawans in Revenge of the Sith, proving that his vengeful nature has no limits, even to children.
Speaking with Polygon in April 2026, Lucasfilm Publishing creative director Michael Siglain explained the franchise's initiative in leaning more on horror stories and other genre-specific narratives, noting that books like Hiding in the Dark are meant to be "genre stories first and Star Wars stories second:"
"Lucasfilm Publishing and our partners are taking the various genre building blocks of Star Wars — fantasy stories, samurai stories, war stories, etc — and are focusing on those elements in very specific and deliberate ways. These are genre stories first, Star Wars stories second, and we hope that these will appeal to both Star Wars fans and genre fans."
In the same interview, Hiding in the Dark author Kiersten White explained why she chose Darth Vader as the monster in the story, citing the fact that the Sith Lord was "the looming nightmare figure of [her] childhood:"
"Darth Vader was the looming nightmare figure of my childhood, so when I was asked if I wanted to scare children with him, my answer was a resounding yes. Well, that's a lie. It was a sustained, fiendish cackle, and then a yes. I could not be more excited about the new genre-specific Star Wars stories coming, and I could not be more honored to be writing terrifying tales in a galaxy far, far away."
All in all, Hiding in the Dark succeeded in making Darth Vader the Empire's most famous monster, especially in the eyes of a child.
Why Star Wars Should Expand More into Horror in Future Projects
Hiding in the Dark serves as the litmus test in Star Wars' embrace of the horror genre, and many would agree that it proved that a branded Star Wars horror story can work on the page. This shift allows Lucasfilm to give more room for horror projects, most notably on-screen.
In April 2025, Andor creator Tony Gilroy said that a Star Wars horror project was "in the works," indicating that the seeds had already been planted for it to materialize under the Lucasfilm banner. Whether it is a live-action or animated Disney+ series, it's clear that it's high time for Star Wars to lean more on horror to offer a refreshing on-screen narrative.
The expansive galaxy already has the raw material. Project Blackwing and the zombie plague from Death Troopers, as well as Darth Plagueis' experiments with life and death, can be obvious inspirations. The recently concluded Maul: Shadow Lord touched on the horror genre ever so slightly after it portrayed the titular former Sith as someone who lurks in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike (mirroring what a true slasher would do).
Still, there is caution from the higher-ups. Star Wars still has not gone R or TV-MA, and Hiding in the Dark is even toned down due to its middle-grade nature. Despite that, the latest novel proved that there is an appetite for horror and a lot of untapped potential in the subject matter.
