49 years ago, George Lucas introduced the world to Luke Skywalker, played by Mark Hamill, and his sprawling Star Wars universe. The franchise went on to become a phenomenon thanks in part to one exciting tradition that stuck with fans who saw A New Hope in theaters. That tradition has endured in Star Wars storytelling ever since, and decades later, Lucasfilm is building its upcoming movie, Star Wars: Starfighter, around it, with Ryan Gosling in the lead role. Gosling plays Kade Auberon, a gifted pilot whose fate is intertwined with the fastest starfighter in the galaxy.
Starfighter officially brings back the tradition of featuring a highly skilled pilot as the main character of a Star Wars movie. The original and prequel trilogies established it through Luke and Anakin Skywalker. In the first Star Wars film, one of Luke's most memorable feats was destroying the Death Star. He flew as Red Five during the Battle of Yavin, piloting his X-wing through the trench and using the Force to guide his torpedoes into the exhaust port, a daring and seemingly impossible shot to pull off.
He did all of it while being pursued by Darth Vader, a far more experienced pilot. In The Empire Strikes Back, Luke's piloting skills were put front and center again. He led the defense of Echo Base as Rogue Leader, flying a snowspeeder into battle against Imperial AT-AT walkers.
Despite still recovering from his wampa encounter, he managed to fly and fight at full tilt. He also piloted his X-wing from Hoth to Dagobah, a jump to a planet he had never seen, guided by little more than Obi-Wan's directions. Return of the Jedi focused more on Luke's confrontation with Palpatine and Darth Vader and hardly highlighted his flying, but watching him slip away from the second Death Star in a stolen Lambda-class shuttle was still satisfying.
The prequel trilogy took the tradition of centering a Star Wars movie on a highly skilled pilot to the next level. Anakin was introduced in The Phantom Menace as nothing short of a prodigy, the only human known to be capable of podracing, a sport whose split-second reflexes were considered far beyond human limits.
During the Battle of Naboo, he accidentally activated a starfighter's autopilot and, despite never having flown one, ended up in space and single-handedly destroyed the Trade Federation's Droid Control Ship. He was nine years old at the time. By Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, his skills had advanced much further, with the brash young Jedi pulling off some of the most aggressive and dangerous maneuvers seen in a Star Wars movie.
The sequel trilogy moved away from this tradition of making its lead hero the most skilled and daring pilot. Disney's Star Wars films introduced Daisy Ridley's Rey as the lead of The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker. Rey's flying was above average and instinctive, stopping short of the heights Anakin and Luke attained in the cockpit. Poe Dameron, a supporting character, was instead established as the saga's ace flyer.
After the disappointing reception of the sequel trilogy, Lucasfilm is seemingly returning to the Star Wars roots that made the franchise so popular. Star Wars: Starfighter's Kade Auberon is the most skilled pilot to lead a Disney-era Star Wars movie. Set five years after The Rise of Skywalker, the movie sends Kade on some of the wildest adventures in the galaxy. The teaser played behind closed doors at Disney's D23 unveiled the decommissioned G17 Imperial Reaper that Gosling's character will be piloting, a ship Kade himself calls "the fastest starfighter ever built."
In 1977, Luke Skywalker established an endearing franchise tradition, bullseying womp rats in his T-16 back home on Tatooine. Decades later, that tradition is at the heart of the Star Wars movie tasked with reviving the franchise on the big screen after The Mandalorian & Grogu fell short of expectations. And the revived tradition is expected to extend beyond Starfighter, with other Star Wars projects centering on highly skilled pilots.
Skilled Pilots Expected in Upcoming Star Wars Projects
Hera Syndulla
Hera Syndulla is undoubtedly among the best pilots in the galaxy. The Twi'lek general flew the Ghost throughout Star Wars Rebels' entire run, led Phoenix Squadron, and pulled off maneuvers that embarrassed Imperial aces. Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays the character in live action, and Ahsoka Season 2 brings her back when the series returns to Disney+ on January 20, 2027.
Hera is likely to spend plenty of time in the cockpit as Grand Admiral Thrawn declares war on the New Republic, with the full Rebels crew, Zeb and Chopper included, reuniting for the fight.
Ezra Bridger
Ezra grew up as a street kid on Lothal and molded himself into a capable pilot in his own right, often flying the Phantom II on Spectre missions. Eman Esfandi portrays him in live action. Season 1 of Ahsoka ended with Ezra finally back from exile in a distant galaxy, and Season 2 puts him right back in the fight alongside Hera, with the trailer already showing off his Jedi skills. His flying should get plenty of use given where the season is heading.
Anakin Skywalker
Anakin, the pilot who did more than anyone to build this tradition on the big screen, is returning. Hayden Christensen is set for a pivotal role in Ahsoka Season 2, which gives him two versions of the character: flashback appearances from the Clone Wars era alongside a young Ahsoka, and a present-day Force Ghost on Peridea. Anakin remains the standard for piloting in this universe, the flyer Obi-Wan Kenobi once called the best star pilot in the galaxy.
Rey
Rey might not be on the same level as Anakin and Luke, but she's a solid pilot. Daisy Ridley returns in the New Jedi Order film from director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, set 15 years after The Rise of Skywalker. The story follows Rey rebuilding the Jedi Order, and George Nolfi is currently on writing duties. The project remains in development without a release date, but Rey's time in the cockpit should come in handy in that movie.
Lando
Lando flew the Falcon through the second Death Star and took out the battle station's reactor. Donald Glover's take on the character earned praise in Solo: A Star Wars Story, and his Lando project, announced as a Disney+ series back in 2020, was retooled into a feature film written by Glover and his brother Stephen.
Departing Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy described the movie as "still somewhat alive" in her January exit interview, confirming Glover has turned in a script and leaving the final call to her successors, Dave Filoni and Lynwen Brennan. If the film does see the light of day, fans will get to see Glover's smooth-talking pilot in action again.
Geraldo Amartey is a writer at The Direct. He joined the team in 2025, bringing with him four years of experience covering entertainment news, pop culture, and fan-favorite franchises for sites like YEN, Briefly and Tuko.
