Star Wars fans, if you thought that Ron Howard's upcoming feature film Solo: A Star Wars Story was all the madcap intergalactic action you'd see from the franchise before Episode IX got here, get ready to celebrate. Disney has announced the new TV series Star Wars Resistance is coming later this year. An animated action-packed adventure that will be set in the time before The Force Awakens, Resistance will also feature the return of a couple of franchise stars in Oscar Isaac and Gwendoline Christie.
While details are usually very slight for a project like this, Star Wars Resistance comes with some key elements already out in the open. The series will center on the young pilot Kazudo Xiono, who was tapped by the Resistance as a spy meant to keep tabs on the First Order. Since this will be before the events of The Force Awakens, we will possibly learn a bit more about Rey and her unwitting connections to Kylo Ren. But for now, only three returning characters have been revealed.
Fans can look forward to hearing the returns of Poe Dameron and Captain Phasma, who will be voiced by Oscar Isaac and Gwendoline Christie, respectively. BB-8 will also be involved, and Star Wars Resistance will introduce many more new pilots and other characters. Considering how polarizing the films' use of Captain Phasma were, I bet fans will be hyped to hear that her story will get fleshed out more here. And personally, I'm hoping to see Poe getting his signature duds for the first time, as cornball as that might be.
Those aren't the only cast members that were announced, either. Star Wars Resistance will also boast the talents of SNL vet Bobby Moynihan, Community's Jim Rash, Scrubs' Donald Faison, Silicon Valley's John Brener, Elena of Avalor's Myrna Velasco, East Enders' Suzie McGrath, Days of Our Lives' Christopher Sean, Legion's Scott Lawrence and Tammy's Tiny Tea Time's Rachel Butera. Now, of course, all I want is for this show to be successful enough to get a live-action counterpart, so that we can see Bobby Moynihan and Jim Rash as live-action Star Wars badasses.
Star Wars Resistance, which first made waves as a potential TV series around the time of Star Wars Rebels' end, was created by Rebels bossman Dave Filoni, who explained why this was where he wanted to put his Star Wars interests next.
The idea for Star Wars Resistance came out of my interest in World War II aircraft and fighter pilots. My grandfather was a pilot and my uncle flew and restored planes, so that's been a big influence on me. There's a long history of high-speed racing in Star Wars, and I think we've captured that sense of excitement in an anime-inspired style, which is something the entire team has been wanting to do for a long time.
Bringing an anime style to this universe can only mean good things, right? Star Wars Resistance is currently set to make its massive debut this fall on Disney Channel, where fans can find episodes premiering weekly, with encore airings hitting Disney XD. To see what'll show up on TV before then, head to our summer premiere schedule.
