You can see the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer this weekend, but we can now look even further ahead as a new rumor has surfaced regarding Gareth Edwards' Star Wars spin-off plot. These spin-offs have the unique ability to take place anywhere in the Star Wars timeline. The new episodes will be tethered to each other and must take place post-Return of the Jedi, and that's fine, but the spin-offs can do what Star Wars does best: build its universe. I would put Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic right next to A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back as my favorite Star Wars story. I want to see behind all the corners and know what's going on beyond the saga of the Skywalkers.
The rumor for the Star Wars spin-off hints at a very cool plot that's unlike anything we've seen before, and yet has a huge impact on the mythology we all know and love. Hit the jump for more. The untitled Star Wars spin-off is slated to open on December 16, 2016.
According to /Film, the Star Wars spin-off plot will involve a group of bounty hunters out to steal the plans for the first Death Star. A quick pitch would be along the lines of The Dirty Dozen meets Ocean's Eleven in the Star Wars universe.
It's a bit of plot that we never needed to know, but it could be cool to find out how it happened. It's also the kind of story that's never been done before in the Star Wars movies.
It's also neat that rather than send in members of the Rebel Alliance, the rebels would pay to use bounty hunters, which is a move that makes sense. A heist is a dirty job, and it takes a particular set of skills. Why not give them to a group of bounty hunters rather than rebels, who we typically associate with do-gooders? Bounty hunters are also expendable, so there could be real stakes if the audience becomes invested in the characters.
Of course, when you mention the words "bounty hunter" in the Star Wars universe, you have to mention Boba Fett. /Film doesn't know whether Fett would be in the movie, and while I'm not a huge fan of the character, I wouldn't mind seeing him as part of a group rather than on a solo mission. Also, we could maybe see more of the other bounty hunters we briefly glimpsed in Empire: IG-88, Bossk, Dengar, Zuckuss, and 4-LOM.
There's also more to the rumor. First up is that the Millennium Falcon is somehow involved, but Han Solo is not in the movie. If the plans are stolen before A New Hope, it could be that Han Solo hasn't taken possession of the Falcon yet. It could be in Lando's hands, or it could belong to someone who had it before Lando. There would be a bit of a thrill to see a group of bounty hunters using the Millennium Falcon as their ride. It would add a nice bit of history to the ship without detracting from what we've seen so far.
Finally, it's rumored that the main character of this film will be introduced in The Force Awakens, would could make him fairly old in Episode VII. Perhaps the spin-off features a young version of Max Von Sydow's character, who, at the age of 85, is the oldest member of the new cast. There's also the possibility that this lead character could be an alien, or someone who doesn't age as quickly, or perhaps they wear a mask and we don't know how old they'll be.
There are a lot of fun options to consider with this rumor, but it's important to remember that this spin-off is a long way off. Edwards and writer Gary Whitta can still change elements of the script, and this could also be part of a misinformation campaign. But if this rumor is true, then it's certainly a promising plot for the first spin-off, and an encouraging sign of where they're hoping to take the series.
