The first Star Wars film was released in December of 2016 The story of the people who stole the plans for the first Death Star was told in the movie, "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story". It was a bold move in a movie that was almost universally loved by fans.
We dug deep into the archives of io9 to take you back to our own journey. We went back to the day we first heard about it, the first news about its title, the casting, the trailer, the controversy, the release, and more. Join us.
We didn't know that it was called Rogue One until May 22, 2014, the day it was born. Lucasfilm says that Gary Whitta and Gareth Edwards are working on a Star Wars spinoff film.
So what is this movie about? I broke the news that this movie is about stealing Death Star plans. There were a few other details that weren't right.
February 3, 2015: news broke that the upcoming Star Wars spinoff will feature a female lead in the form of Felicity Jones.
At a Disney shareholders meeting in March of 2015, Bob Iger announced that the next Star Wars movie would be called...ROGUE ONE. And it will be a star. The hype begins.
The cast was updated on March 25, 2015.
There is a rumor that Felicity Jones is playing the daughter of Boba Fett.
August 8, 2015: Some set photos from the movie are revealed.
The first trailer for the movie was released eight months before its release. We did a full breakdown.
The first toy packaging for the movie is revealed.
Mads Mikkelsen accidentally revealed that he is playing a father in the film.
For the first time, the names of the characters from the movie are revealed. Disney declared the leak and the official news wouldn't come until the following month.
The first time we heard that Tony was joining was in June. The film would eventually get a script credit, and then it would be possible to work on a Disney+ spinoff show.
The names and details of the characters in the film were revealed on June 22, 2016
Some of the first ships from Rogue One are revealed at the Star Wars Celebration Europe.
Jyn Erso is the first toy in the movie.
The U-Wing was our first good look at the new Star Wars ship.
The second full trailer for Rogue One was released.
io9 reminds fans that many Bothans will not die in the movie.
All of the toys from the movie are finally revealed.
The new composer for the movie is Michael Giacchino.
A new trailer for the movie is being called "The Final" It wasn't the final one. We did it in a way that was geeky.
There are some big teases of what to come in the next trailer.
Lucasfilm released a video of the stars of Rogue One talking about being in Star Wars.
This is a good trailer with good K2 footage.
The director talks about the controversy over reshoots.
We loved our review ofRogue One: A Star Wars Story.
The story of the Death Star plans being stolen is not the first time it has been told. The Expanded Universe did the same thing. It was crazy.
December 16, 2016 is the day that the movie "Rogue One" is out. io9 dives into all the Easter eggs we saw in the movie.
We wrote about how the new footage from A New Hope ended up in the finale of Rogue One.
We wrote about the different endings of the movie for the first time on December 19th.
Diego Luna said in an interview that he wanted to touch Jabba.
The new Star Wars movie brought out some hot takes. The worst ones were broken down.
Lucasfilm addresses the decision to digitally recreate Peter and Carrie Fisher.
There is more digging into what actually happened in the reshoots of the movie. It is a fascinating story.
The signature shot from the trailers was not in the movie. Here is the story why.
We spoke to the team behind the film about the process of putting ships and characters from Star Wars Rebels into the film.
January 15, 2017: After the success of Rogue One, Felicity Jones will host Saturday Night Life.
The Lucasfilm Story Group talks about Easter eggs in the movie.
There is a question as to why Princess Leia was near Scarif at the end of Rogue One.
January 30, 2017: Why no wedge in the movie? The story is here.
The effects reels are very cool.
February 22, 2017: The Rogue One is out. Which seems odd.
The actress who played Princess Leia before she was replaced tells the story.
Darth Vader's final scene was a last-minute addition to the film.
The crawl at the beginning of the movie was taken out quickly. The story is here.
We wrote about one of the happier endings that was discussed in the movie.
The alternate ending of Rogue One would have everyone frozen in carbonate. For real. It was discussed.
The retro VHS ad for Rogue One was released.
We broke down everything that was cut from the movie. It was a lot.
Did you notice the reference to the Grand Admiral Thrawn?
Michael Giacchino talked about the music to Rogue One.
The meeting of K-2SO and Cassian Andor will be shown in a comic book. This is before the news that will come the following year.
The legacy of Rogue One continues when a new series is announced.
Five years have passed since the release of Rogue One.
Wondering where our feed went? The new one can be picked up here.
