By George Bate & Josh Bate
From sprawling comic book crossovers to expansive videogames to groundbreaking television shows, 2023 was a fantastic year for Star Wars. Looking into the horizon reveals that this trend is likely to continue in 2024 with so many exciting projects coming soon. Here is our list of the Top 10 Most Anticipated Star Wars Releases of 2024.
10. The Glass Abyss
Starting off our Most Anticipated list is The Glass Abyss, a new adult novel by Steven Barnes. The Glass Abyss is set after The Phantom Menace and focuses on Mace Windu in the aftermath of Qui-Gon Jinn’s death. Receiving a posthumous message from Jinn, Windu undertakes a special mission to honor his fallen Jedi comrade. Not only does is this novel interesting for its focus on Mace Windu, a character seldom in the spotlight, but it also comes from author Steven Barnes, who previously wrote the Legends novel The Cestus Deception.
9. Bounty Hunters
If you’ve been following our coverage of Star Wars over the past few years, you’ll know than Ethan Sacks’ Bounty Hunters comic series for Marvel Comics is one of our favorites (and the runner up for our favorite Star Wars comic of 2023). Not only has this comic focused on some of Star Wars’ most under-appreciated characters like Valance, but it has also contributed so much to building out the lore of the criminal underworld. It’s with great excitement (and sadness) that Bounty Hunters comes to an end in 2024, but we have high hopes for the finale of what has been one of the most consistently enjoyable Star Wars comics.
8. Skeleton Crew
Jon Watts and Christopher Ford oversee this new Disney+ series starring Jude Law. The show has been described as being in the vein of 1980s Amblin projects, focusing on a group of kids who get lost and are trying to find their way home in a perilous galaxy. There’s definitely something unique about Skeleton Crew that has yet to be revealed in interviews or through promotional material, which has us eagerly anticipating what the series will actually entail.
7. The Living Force
One of our most anticipated projects of 2024 is The Living Force, a new adult novel from author John Jackson Miller and publisher Random House Worlds. The Living Force is set in the year before The Phantom Menace and focuses on Qui-Gon Jinn and the Jedi Council. There’s so much to be explored in the years leading up to the Skywalker Saga, and this novel seems as if it will add immensely to an appreciation of the prequel trilogy. Miller is also a phenomenal author, having previously penned the acclaimed Legends novel Kenobi. All in all, The Living Force should be a treat for Star Wars fans.
6. D23 2024
The ultimate Disney fan event has featured some iconic Star Wars reveals in the last few years, and our hopes are high for what 2024’s D23 will entail. The 2024 D23 Fan Expo will be held at the Anaheim Convention Center from August 9-11. For reference of how amazing D23 can be for Star Wars fans, check out some of our coverage of D23 2022 here.
5. Tales of the Jedi Season 2
Tales of the Jedi Season 1 had some strong episodes, in particular “The Sith Lord,” which showed Count Dooku’s final turn to the dark side and the murder of Yaddle. While Season 1 focused on Ahsoka and Dooku, we hope that the second season highlights other Jedi. There’s definitely space for the stories of a number of prequel-era Jedi , including Quinlan Vos and Qui-Gon Jinn, to grow, but there are also a whole range of High Republic era Jedi who would be fascinating to explore. Either way, Tales of the Jedi Season 1 was a treat and there’s much to anticipate about Dave Filoni’s next effort with the series.
4. The High Republic: Temptation of the Force
The penultimate High Republic adult novel hits shelves in 2024 and is among our most anticipated Star Wars releases of the year. The novel follows the excellent The High Republic: The Eye of Darkness (our winner of Best Star Wars Novel of 2023) and is written by Tessa Gratton, who previously wrote the young-adult novel The High Republic: Path of Deceit. With The Acolyte debuting in 2024 and giving us our first look at the High Republic era in live-action, Gratton’s novel will nicely complement what is shaping up to be a High Republic-heavy year for Star Wars fans.
3. Star Wars: Outlaws
Outlaws is the prominent Star Wars video game of 2024, and probably the Star Wars video game we’ve most looked forward to in quite some time. Developed by Massive Entertainment and published by Ubisoft, the game takes place in between Episodes V and VI and follows outlaw scoundrel Kay Vess (portrayed by Humberly González). What’s most exciting about the game is that it’s open-world, making it the first open-world Star Wars video game (Jedi: Survivor had large explorable worlds, but not necessarily enough to be considered an open-world). The prospect of immersing ourselves as a scoundrel in an open-world Star Wars game has us so excited.
2. The Bad Batch Season 3
The second season of The Bad Batch ended on an emotionally devastating note with the death of Tech, which sets the stage for a dramatic final season of Clone Force 99. The Bad Batch Season 2 featured some of the strongest episodes of Star Wars animation to date (“The Outpost” was particularly exceptional), meaning there’s a lot to look forward to from the creative team of Jennifer Corbett, Brad Rau, and company with Season 3. The Bad Batch has served as a bridge between the prequel and sequel trilogies and continues to explore the changing role of clones and the rise of the stormtrooper in the Empire. With similar themes and ideas likely explored in this final season, we can’t watch to see what The Bad Batch Season 3 entails.
1. The Acolyte
The Acolyte is firmly our most anticipated Star Wars project of 2024. The new Disney+ series comes from showrunner Leslye Headland, who previously helmed the excellent Russian Doll for Netflix. The Acolyte is set before The Phantom Menace, during the final days of the High Republic era, and will focus on dark side characters. The series is also described as a “mystery thriller,” which is a different sub-genre for a Star Wars show to explore. But, more than anything, what has us excited for The Acolyte is the footage shown at Star Wars Celebration Europe 2023. For a detailed description of what that footage entailed, check out our review here.
Stay tuned to The HoloFiles and Star Wars Holocron for continued coverage of Star Wars movies, shows, books, comics, games, and more in 2024!