Lucasfilm may have just secretly announced an Old Republic Star Wars project without anyone knowing.
The company had lots of treats for fans of the franchise over the four-day Star Wars Celebration event. This included the announcement of three new movies, some incredibly exciting Ahsoka footage, a tantalizing sneak peek at The Acolyte, and more.
However, there's one key announcement that may have gone unnoticed.
On Lucasfilm’s new official timeline for the franchise, there is a spot for The Old Republic. However, even with how popular that Star Wars era is, there’s a catch—it doesn’t currently have any canon stories.
Beloved entries into the franchise such as Knights of the Old Republic all sit firmly in Legends status.
So, is a new project on the way?
What About the Old Republic Is Canon?
The Old Republic is a beloved era for many fans, even with its Legends canon status—aka, none of those stories line up with any Disney-produced Star Wars content.
There are, however, some select aspects carried over.
One of the first elements from the era to make it into Disney’s new Canon was Darth Revan, a fan-favorite Sith character. While all of his stories remain in Legends, his actual existence was confirmed thanks to the Rise of Skywalker Visual Dictionary.
He went on to be mentioned in 2022’s canon book Star Wars: Shadow of the Sith, which followed Luke Skywalker two decades after the Battle of Endor as he went up against a new Sith menace.
Other lore carryovers are slim but include the crossguard lightsaber hilt design used by Kylo Ren, a blaster added to Star Wars Battlefront II, Yavin-4’s place in ancient Sith lore, and other small tidbits.
There is one key conflict in the Old Republic which could be the perfect place to focus on when creating a new canon story.
What Big Events Could an Old Republic Project Focus On?
One obvious choice would be to tell a story about the Mandalorian War, one of the earliest conflicts between the proud faction and the Jedi Order.
Seeing how prevalent Mandalorian culture and characters are in Star Wars stories right now, this would be an obvious way to transition fans into a new era.
In fact, it’s established that in the current canon, the Dark Saber was stolen by Mandalorians who sacked a Jedi Temple during the fall of the Old Republic. There have also been numerous references to the animosities between the Jedi and Mandalorian cultures.
In Legends, the Mandalorians were, unbeknownst to them, manipulated by the Sith Empire into starting a war against the Galactic Republic. This confrontation finally came to an end after the Jedi started getting involved.
Another big draw of The Old Republic is the Sith Lords who steal the spotlight. Ask any fans what their favorite parts of the era are, and they are likely to point to names like Revan or Nhilius.
Darth Revan, in particular, is one of the most highly regarded fan-favorite Sith characters in the whole franchise. With Thrawn having been brought over into official canon thanks to Star Wars: Rebels, it wouldn’t be surprising if Revan is next on Lucasfilm’s list.
What makes this even more likely, is how closely connected Revan is to the Mandalorian War. He is the one that, as a Jedi before his proper fall to the dark side, ended the confrontation—by sacrificing countless lives to wipe out the entire Mandalorian fleet.
James Mangold’s Movie Goes to Ancient Times
One of the bigger announcements at Star Wars Celebration was the reveal that Logan and Indiana Jones director James Mangold would be writing and directing a movie focused on the very first Jedi Order.
Technically speaking, the Old Republic did explain how the Jedi came to be. However, those events are far removed from the bigger, more central timelines in the same iconic era.
Interestingly enough, on Lucasfilm’s new timeline, Mangold’s story is at its own spot prior to the Old Republic.
Even before Mangold’s movie was announced, the current Star Wars canon already made it clear that Lucasfilm aimed to change a lot of what the Old Republic established, especially when it comes to the first Jedi.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi revealed that the very first Jedi was a nameless figure known only as the Prime Jedi. They are also likely the same being who built the first Jedi Temple on Ahch-To.
Even with the small amount of information known, it seems clear that both Mangold and Lucasfilm are looking to chart their own course.
Perhaps this mysterious movie could even set up a sequel that might give fans a canon story of how the Sith came to be.
The Old Republic Isn’t Forgotten
The Old Republic certainly isn’t forgotten about, even years after its canon was disowned by Disney. Hopefully, fans aren't too far off in thinking that Lucasfilm was hinting at some secret plans with its new timeline.
Bioware’s massively successful Star Wars: The Old Republic MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online Game), which was first released in 2011, is still going strong today. In fact, it even debuted a new Sith-focused expansion pack early last year.
Then there’s the beloved Knights of the Old Republic RPG, which is currently in the process of being remade. Sadly, rumor suggests that things behind the scenes are a little messy on that project, so it could be a while before the title sees the light of day.
Either way, with how popular the timeline is amongst Star Wars fans, it’s honestly strange that it’s taken this long for an impending Old Republic project to become a real possibility.
At the very least, whatever becomes of James Mangold will be the closest the era has gotten to seeing live-action, and it will almost certainly be the perfect stepping stone into a proper exploration of the fan-favorite time in Star Wars history.
