Star Wars: Skeleton Crew wastes no time answering an integral time-related question.
First announced in 2022, Skeleton Crew is Lucasfilm's latest Disney+ series created by Spider-Man: No Way Home's Jon Watts and Christopher Ford and Star Wars' first-ever children-led show.
Described as an Amblin Entertainment-style story set within the Star Wars Universe, the question die-hards have been asking is just when this coming-of-age streaming story occurs on the Star Wars timeline.
When Does Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Take Place on the Timeline?
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew addresses when the new Disney+ series occurs within the Star Wars timeline before doing anything else.
Episode 1 begins with a traditional Star Wars-style opening that specifically states Skeleton Crew takes place after the fall of the Empire and during the New Republic.
While audiences knew this new sci-fi adventure would take place during the MandoVerse era, the importance placed on its time period, and how soon Star Wars would address it, was unknown.
But even though the Star Wars series acknowledged its era before even introducing its characters, neither Jon Watts nor Christopher Ford has precisely pinned down its starting point within The Mandalorian timeline.
When asked if Skeleton Crew takes place alongside The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka, Jon Watts told TechRadar, "We kept it a little bit flexible:"
"But we kept it a little bit flexible because we're tied to the kids' ages. So, as we look towards the future, we're still figuring out where it fits on the exact timeline."
But even though the exact timing is a little hazy, Christopher Ford assured fans that "an exact date" will be revealed in the future:
"Yeah, it's like we've thrown a dart but it's not quite landed on the board yet. So yeah, there'll be an answer one day and it'll be an exact date."
However, in contrast, Empire Magazine (via ScreenRant) gave a slightly more specific answer in revealing behind-the-scenes info about the show, stating Skeleton Crew takes place "concurrently with 'The Mandalorian' and 'Ahsoka.'"
Will Skeleton Crew Cross Paths With Mando and Ahsoka?
While Empire Magazine's Skeleton Crew report suggests the potential for a Star Wars Disney+ crossover, Watts and Ford's comments make that possibility much less likely.
If the goal is to keep the specifics "flexible," there's no need to further muddle Lucasfilm's already ambiguous MandoVerse timeline with further canon connections or contradictions (check out how Star Wars contradicted Jon Favreau's Mandalorian timeline here)
Plus, for much of Ahsoka, Rosario Dawson's heroine and Sabine Wren are on Peridea in a completely different galaxy, making a cameo or crossover near impossible if it doesn't take place early on within the 2023 series.
It's also worth noting that Watts (via TechRadar) explained they set Skeleton Crew in this era because "There's not anyone in place who can swoop in and help them."
So unless Watts is throwing fans off the trail, it doesn't sound like he or Ford want any familiar Star Wars heroes swooping in to save Skeleton Crew's cast, even though its New Republic timeline is integral to their story.
But that's only for now. Not only did Christopher Ford promise exact answers one day, but it's possible Skeleton Crew's cast could appear in Jon Favreau's MandoVerse cinematic crossover, The Mandalorian and Grogu.
Fans should expect to learn more about Skeleton Crew's timeline placement, the implications of its New Republic setting, and if future seasons or cameos are in the works throughout Skeleton Crew's Disney+ run.
The first episodes of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew premiere on December 2 on Disney+ at 9 pm ET. New episodes will drop every Tuesday beginning on December 10 at the same time.
