Star Wars Just Got One Step Closer to Making Its Most Overlooked Era Canon

Star Wars Celebration 2023 featured announcements that would stretch the boundaries of the Star Wars timeline. Three new movies — one set during the dawn of the Jedi Order, another wrapping up the “Mando-verse” the current TV shows are exploring, and one following Rey as she re-establishes the Jedi — expanded the Star Wars canon to new boundaries, and yet that wasn’t the most exciting development.

The official Star Wars website now features the canonical timeline shown off at Celebration 2023, and one of the franchise’s official eras exists without any projects set during it. That leaves room for the exploration of the most underrated chapter in Star Wars canon, one that’s already a fan favorite of the non-canon Legends universe.

The Star Wars timeline revealed at Star Wars Celebration on April 7, 2023.

When the new timeline was revealed, attention was focused on the Dawn of the Jedi and New Jedi Order bookends. But just after the Dawn of the Jedi lies The Old Republic, the setting of the beloved Knights of the Old Republic video game. The Old Republic spans millennia, stretching from about 25,000 years before the events of A New Hope all the way to 1,000 years prior.

The new canon could change this, but for now, it’s the largest span of time in the franchise, and one ripe for exploration. The seeds are already planted: we’ve heard tales of the Old Republic through The Clone Wars (especially when it comes to Mandalorian history), and Ahsoka is name-dropping video game characters and plot points.

The star maps shown in Ahsoka closely resemble the crucial maps shown in Knights of the Old Republic.

With this bit of recognition now official thanks to the Star Wars website, this could be the first clue that Star Wars canon truly intends to explore the thousands of years spanning the birth of the Jedi Order all the way to their peak.

It’s unclear if this period will be explored in TV through flashbacks on The Mandalorian, in comics and novels like the High Republic era, a remake of the beloved game and its sequel, or even a standalone movie or TV project. But regardless of what comes next, it’s great that Star Wars is finally embracing this era, and the practically unlimited storytelling opportunities that come with it.