All three Star Wars trilogies are now available on Disney+. But binge-watching a Star Wars saga is getting harder and harder. Where do you start if you want to watch the entire saga? Do you have to watch the series, or can you save them for later? And what about the spin-offs? Do you watch them or skip them? By the time you finish reading this post, you'll have answers to many of these questions, although it will all depend on the path you choose, young Padawan.
Since the acquisition of Lucasfilm, the Star Wars universe has continued to expand. A new trilogy, several spin-offs , and new television series like The Mandalorian , The Book of Boba Fett , and Obi-Wan Kenobi have all arrived . And with so much content on Disney+, it can be difficult to know where to begin.
Were you planning a proper marathon but don't know the order in which to watch them? Well, there are basically several ways to do it (as with any self-respecting saga of this kind): chronological order (the favorite of the order freaks), release order, and the order invented by the saga's most die-hard fans (the famous "Machete Order"). Take note.
Star Wars: movies and series in chronological order
For many fans of the universe, the best way to watch the Skywalker Saga films is in chronological order, not release order. As you know, the second trilogy, released between the 90s and early 2000s, is a "prequel" to the first trilogy, which hit theaters between the late 70s and 80s.
The problem with this order is that it spoils one of the most important revelations in the entire history of Star Wars - if not the most important -: the discovery of who Luke Skywalker's father is - for that reason the Machete Order was invented, which we will explain a little later.
With this in mind, the chronological order, that is, how the story unfolds over time from its origin to its conclusion, is presented as follows – we also include existing series and the main spin-offs of the universe here so that you have the complete temporal view, as Disney itself has shown on more than one occasion:
- Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
- Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars (animated series)*
- Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
- The Bad Remittance (animated series)*
- Solo: A Star Wars Story (spin-off)
- Obi-Wan Kenobi (series)
- Star Wars: Rebels (animated series)*
- Andor (series)
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (spin-off)
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
- The Mandalorian (series)
- The Book of Boba Fett (series)
- Star Wars: Resistance (animated series)*
- Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens
- Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi
- Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker
Star Wars: movies and series in order of release
In addition to chronological order, there is, of course, the order of release, or in other words, watching the films in the same order in which they were released in theaters.
This means that we see the Skywalker saga with significant time jumps : first the trilogy of the 70s/80s, then the prequel trilogy, released in the 90s/early 2000s, and then the final trilogy, starting in 2015, with the appearance in between of the "Star Wars Stories".
This is the order according to the date of release in theaters, along with the series also released on TV:
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977)
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983)
- Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)
- Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002)
- Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) – Animated series*
- Star Wars: Rebels (2014) – Animated series*
- Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) – Spin-off
- Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (2017)
- Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) – Spin-off
- Star Wars: Resistance (2018) – Animated series*
- The Mandalorian (2019) – Series*
- Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
- The Bad Consignment (2021) – Animated series*
- The Book of Boba Fett (2021) – Series
- Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022) – Series
- Andor (2022) – Series
Star Wars: Movies By Fan Order (Machete Order)
This order, invented by the most dedicated fans, may seem chaotic, but it makes perfect sense. This organization eliminates all productions irrelevant to the plot and establishes a rather interesting order for watching the two original trilogies without spoiling the ending.
First of all, out The Phantom Menace. According to this order invented in 2011, the first film is superfluous. The true fan of the works of George Lucas considers that it is nothing more than a remake of Episode IV full of action and CGI demonstrations, but that it does not add a single interesting detail to the main Star Wars plot.
The Machete Order is thus established:
- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
- Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
- Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
- Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
Why this order? Simple. By starting with Episode IV, you'll see the story exactly as George Lucas originally envisioned it. In fact, you'll appreciate that if you watch the film without any prior knowledge of this universe, Obi-Wan's words alone will be enough to understand everything that has happened previously. The Jedi Master explains himself perfectly in this film ; you just have to pay attention. Next, we'll move on to The Empire Strikes Back to see the crux of the plot. And before resolving it, we'll go back in time to see the origin of Darth Vader now that we know he's Luke's father. We should start with Episode I (you can watch it if you want; no one's forcing you not to), but since it's optional, this system skips that film. Then, we'll continue with Revenge of the Sith and finish with Return of the Jedi , resolving the first two trilogies in a very elegant way and without revealing Darth Vader's fate prematurely.
Of course, this order isn't without its debatable points . Where's the new trilogy? What about the spin-offs and TV series? Well, since this order was created in 2011, they aren't included. However, it's still interesting to watch the films in this order and then fill in the gaps with the series and films that came after. After Return of the Jedi, you can start the new Rey trilogy without any problem. And, if you like, you can consult the chronological order to fill in any gaps.