Highlights
- Watching Star Wars in release order retains the biggest plot twist, while chronological order offers a coherent story with minor spoilers.
- Machete order skips Episode 1 and focuses on preserving big revelations while maintaining narrative flow and character arcs.
- Disney+ live-Action series fit easily in release order, but chronologically, they slot in between different episodes of the saga.
Star Wars is one of the best and most popular sci-fi franchises ever created with millions of fans all over the world. However, with eleven movies and numerous television shows all part of the series’ canon, it can be difficult to figure out the best order to watch the Star Wars movies. Unfortunately, there isn’t really a simple answer in that regard.
When it comes to the best order to watch Star Wars, there are generally two very different lines of thought. Some think that it’s better to watch the movies in the order in which they were released, while others believe that watching in chronological order provides a more coherent narrative. As those who read on will soon learn, both orders have their pros and cons.
Updated May 4, 2024, by Tom Bowen: With today being Star Wars day, now seems like a great time to take another look at the best order to watch Star Wars. While most people will probably argue that the best way to experience the Star Wars timeline is either in chronological or release date order, there is actually a third option for those seeking to save themselves from the many cons that each of the aforementioned orders brings with them. Machete order aims to provide viewers with the best of both galaxies while also skipping over some of the series’ duller or more bizarre plot points. The steady flow of new Star Wars series on Disney Plus has also given potential viewers something else to think about, though figuring out where the live Action shows fit into the Star Wars timeline is thankfully quite simple.
Every Star Wars Movie in Order of Release Date
- Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977)
- Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
- Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)
- Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002)
- Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005)
- Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015)
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
- Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (2017)
- Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)
- Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
Though it may seem like a good idea to watch the Star Wars movies in chronological order rather than in the order in which they were originally released, there are a few downsides to doing it this way. By far the biggest benefit of watching every Star Wars movie in release date order is that one of the series’ biggest and most shocking reveals will remain unspoiled. However, that’s not the only advantage to watching in release date order.
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Many feel that the Star Wars prequel trilogy is significantly weaker than the original three movies and the Disney-era installments. As such, watching the original trilogy first can give viewers a reason to endure the franchise’s first three episodes. Likewise, watching the movies in release date order will lead to a constant improvement in special effects, though the practical effects in the original movies are arguably far superior to the CGI in those that followed.
Every Star Wars Movie in Chronological Order
- Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (32 BBY)
- Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (22 BBY)
- Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (19 BBY)
- Solo: A Star Wars Story (13-10 BBY)
- Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (0 BBY)
- Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (0 BBY/ABY)
- Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (3 ABY)
- Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (4 ABY)
- Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (34 ABY)
- Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (34 ABY)
- Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (35 ABY)
For those unaware, BBY and ABY stand for “Before the Battle of Yavin” and “After the Battle of Yavin”. This system is used as it places
A New Hope
at the center of the
Star Wars
timeline, making it easy to distinguish between sequels and prequels.
Watching every Star Wars movie in chronological order will lead to a much more coherent story overall, though will result in one or two big spoilers here and there. Given that a lot of people already know about The Empire Strikes Back‘s big movie plot twist due to it constantly being referenced in pop culture though, this might not necessarily be such a big issue for some. As such, whether to watch in release or chronological order may well come down to whether or not potential viewers already know about Luke’s parentage beforehand.
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In terms of other downsides, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace is widely considered to be the worst of the 11 Star Wars movies, so starting there may not provide the best first impression of the series. However, the movie does still have its moments and viewers can rest assured that it’s all uphill from there. Well, mostly, anyway. There’s also an argument to be made that going into the movie with no expectations will make it a lot less disappointing than watching it after sitting through the original trilogy, though this may vary from viewer to viewer.
Machete Order
- Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977)
- Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002)
- Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005)
- Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
- Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015)
- Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (2017)
- Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
Machete Order was created by blogger and self-confessed movie geek Rod Hilton in 2011 and seeks to address some of the many issues with watching the main Star Wars movies in either of the aforementioned orders. Most notably, it aims to preserve the big twist in The Empire Strikes Back while still introducing Anakin before the appearance of his force ghost at the end of the newer cuts of Return of the Jedi.
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Interestingly, Machete order completely omits Episode 1, with Hilton arguing that it’s largely irrelevant in the context of the overall saga. In fact, he even goes as far as to call it a distraction, pointing out that many of the characters introduced in the movie are killed off or forced into the background before the movie comes to an end. Episode 1 is also the only Star Wars movie to mention Midichlorians, so skipping over it effectively serves to retcon this incredibly divisive concept.
Action-disney-star-wars-series-fit-into-the-star-wars-timeline”> Where Do the Live-Action Disney+ Star Wars Series Fit into the Star Wars Timeline?
When it comes to release date order, knowing where the Disney+ Star Wars shows fit into the overall timeline is pretty easy, with The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, and Ahsoka having debuted in 2019, 2021, 2022 (both Obi-Wan Kenobi and Andor), and 2023 respectively.
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Chronologically, however, things are a bit more complicated. Obi-Wan Kenobi takes place after Solo: A Star Wars Story and the prequel trilogy, while The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka all slot in between episodes six and seven. Andor, on the other hand, takes place after Obi-Wan Kenobi but before the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
The Best Movie Trilogies Of All Time
These memorable movie trilogies are among the very best of all time and have left a lasting impression on audiences all over the world.
FAQ
Q: What do BBY and ABY mean in Star Wars?
BBY and ABY stand for “Before the Battle of Yavin” and “After the Battle of Yavin” respectively.
Q: Why is the Battle of Yavin so important in Star Wars lore?
The Battle of Yavin saw the Rebel Alliance destroy the original Death Star, thus making it one of their first major victories over the Galactic Empire.
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