Star Wars is an American epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various films and other media, including television series, video games, novels, comic books, theme park attractions, and themed areas, comprising an all-encompassing fictional universe. Star Wars is one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time.
Wedge Antilles is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. He is a supporting character portrayed by Denis Lawson in the original Star Wars trilogy, and voiced by David Ankrum in Episode IV – A New Hope (1977) and Rogue One (2016). He is also featured in the Star Wars expanded universe, most notably as the lead character in most of the X-Wing novels. Antilles has also appeared in the sequel trilogy film The Rise of Skywalker (2019), with Lawson reprising his role; in the 2014 animated series Star Wars Rebels, voiced by Nathan Kress; and in the 2023 second volume of Star Wars: Visions, voiced again by Lawson.
LandoCalrissian is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. He is introduced in The Empire Strikes Back (1980) as a friend of Han Solo and the administrator of Cloud City on the planet Bespin. Prior to the events of the film, Lando made a career as a gambler, con artist, playboy, mining engineer, and businessman, and was the owner of the Millennium Falcon until losing the ship to Han in a bet. In the film, when Cloud City is threatened by the Galactic Empire, Lando reluctantly betrays Han to Darth Vader, but later helps Han's friends escape from the Empire. In Return of the Jedi (1983), after becoming a general in the Rebel Alliance, Lando helps rescue Han from Jabba the Hutt and leads the attack on the second Death Star.
Mara Jade Skywalker is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. She appears in the now non-canon Legends series as the wife of Luke Skywalker and mother of Ben Skywalker. She has been voiced by Heidi Shannon, Edie Mirman and Kath Soucie in various Star Wars video games.
Grand Admiral Thrawn is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. He first appeared in what came to be known as the Thrawn trilogy of novels (1991–1993) by Timothy Zahn. An Imperial military leader and a member of the Chiss race, Thrawn leads remnants of the scattered Galactic Empire in the aftermath of its fall.
Timothy Zahn is an American writer of science fiction and fantasy. He is known best for his prolific collection of Star Wars books, chiefly the Thrawn trilogy, and has published several other series of sci-fi and fantasy novels of his own original creation, in addition to many works of short fiction.
The Clone Wars is a fictional conflict in the Star Wars franchise by George Lucas. Though mentioned briefly in the first Star Wars film, the war itself was not depicted until Attack of the Clones (2002) and Revenge of the Sith (2005). The Clone Wars are also the setting for three eponymous projects: a 2D animated series (2003–2005), a 3D film (2008), and a 3D animated series. They have featured in numerous Star Wars books and games.
Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire is a 1996 multimedia project created by Lucasfilm. The idea was to create a story set between the films The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, and to explore all commercial possibilities of a full motion picture release without actually making a film. The venture was intended to reinvigorate interest in the franchise ahead of the theatrical Special Editions of the Star Wars trilogy released the following year.
Yavin is a fictional planet in the Star Wars galaxy. It first appeared in the 1977 film Star Wars and is depicted as a large red gas giant with an extensive satellite system of moons. The hidden military base of the Rebel Alliance is located on its fourth moon, Yavin 4.
The canon of a work of fiction is "the body of works taking place in a particular fictional world that are widely considered to be official or authoritative; [especially] those created by the original author or developer of the world". Canon is contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction and other derivative works.
The Thrawn trilogy, also known as the Heir to the Empire trilogy, is a trilogy of novels set in the Star Wars universe, written by Timothy Zahn between 1991 and 1993. The first book marked the end of a notable drought of new Star Wars material over a four-year period, between the 10th anniversary of the original 1977 film's release and the release of Heir to the Empire (1991).
Splinter of the Mind's Eye is a 1978 science fiction novel by American writer Alan Dean Foster, a sequel to the film Star Wars (1977). Originally published in 1978 by Del Rey, a division of Ballantine Books, the book was written with the intention of being adapted as a low-budget sequel to Star Wars in case the original film was not successful enough to finance a high-budget sequel.
The Buffyverse canon consists of materials that are thought to be genuine and those events, characters, settings, etc., that are considered to have inarguable existence within the fictional universe established by the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The Buffyverse is expanded through other additional materials such as comics, novels, pilots, promos and video games which do not necessarily take place in exactly the same fictional continuity as the Buffy episodes and Angel episodes. Star Trek, Star Wars, Stargate and other prolific sci-fi and fantasy franchises have similarly gathered complex fictional continuities through hundreds of stories told in different formats.
Star Trek and Star Wars are American media franchises that represent alternative scenarios of space adventure. The two franchises proliferate in this setting of storytelling, and each has offered various forms of media productions for decades. Each franchise comprises billions of dollars of intellectual property, employment for thousands, and entertainment for many more.
A shared universe or shared world is a fictional universe from a set of creative works where one or more writers independently contribute works that can stand alone but fits into the joint development of the storyline, characters, or world of the overall project. It is common in genres like science fiction. It differs from collaborative writing in which multiple artists are working together on the same work and from crossovers where the works and characters are independent except for a single meeting.
Star Wars has been expanded to media other than the original films. This spin-off material is licensed and moderated by Lucasfilm, though during his involvement with the franchise Star Wars creator George Lucas reserved the right to both draw from and contradict it in his own works. Such derivative works have been produced concurrently with, between, and after the original, prequel, and sequel trilogies, as well as the spin-off films and television series. Commonly explored Star Wars media include books, comic books, and video games, though other forms such as audio dramas have also been produced.
Mandalorians are a fictional group of people associated with the planet Mandalore in the Star Wars universe and franchise created by Joe Johnston and George Lucas. Their appearance is often distinguished by gear such as battle helmets, armor, and jetpacks.
Star Wars: Lords of the Sith is a Star Wars novel by Paul S. Kemp, published in April 2015. Set between the film Revenge of the Sith and the novel Star Wars: Tarkin, as well as the TV show Star Wars Rebels, it features Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine facing off against revolutionaries, led by Rebel Alliance Partisan Cham Syndulla. Lords of the Sith was one of the first four novels published in the franchise after Lucasfilm redefined Star Wars continuity in April 2014.
Star Wars: Thrawn is a Star Wars novel by Timothy Zahn, published on April 11, 2017, by Del Rey Books. It chronicles the origins of Grand Admiral Thrawn, a popular character originating from the Star Wars Legends line of works, which were declared non-canon to the franchise after Disney redefined Star Wars continuity in April 2014. The novel was announced in July 2016 alongside news that the character Thrawn would be reintroduced into the Star Wars franchise on the 3D CGI animated television series Star Wars Rebels.
Pablo Hidalgo is a Chilean-born creative executive based in California, for Lucasfilm on the Star Wars franchise. He is frequently named as one of the people tasked with maintaining the canon of the franchise after its partial reboot in 2014 and often consults on Star Wars projects in development regarding their integration in the larger Star Wars canon. He is the author of several official references and guidebooks about the Star Wars, G.I. Joe and Transformers franchises.
