DC’s Best Director Can Save Star Wars

Originally, Patty Jenkins broke our hearts when she announced she would no longer be directing Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. One of the major reasons for that initial bad news was that the director was hoping to direct Wonder Woman 3 for Warner Bros., and she ended up submitting a treatment.

This is why Rogue Squadron was pulled from Disney’s upcoming slate of Star Wars films last May. But the director always intended to return to a galaxy far, far away if her plans for DC’s fan-favorite Amazon fell through.

Unfortunately for Patty Jenkins (and fortunately for fans), Warner Bros. didn’t like the script treatment, but the veteran director knew this was a possibility and had already been working on a deal with Lucasfilm to return.

Once Wonder Woman 3 was no longer a going concern and she formally left the would-be Gal Gadot film, both parties completed the deal.

For the record, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron has not been officially confirmed by Disney, but Jenkins is currently working on a script and is optimistic she can deliver something that will make the fandom happy.

From my perspective (what Obi-Wan Kenobi might call “a certain point of view”), Patty Jenkins is right to be optimistic because Star Wars: Rogue Squadron is exactly what the franchise needs right now.

For one thing, a movie focusing on X-Wing pilots and dogfights will naturally move the franchise away from its endless focus on Jedi.

Considering how disappointing the Jedi-centric The Rise of Skywalker was and how much better non-Jedi Star Wars content like The Mandalorian and Andor have been, a movie focusing on the pilots who are the backbone of The Rebellion is just what we need.

While we don’t yet know if Patty Jenkins will adapt any additional Rogue Squadron novels or comics, another reason I think this film can save Star Wars is that those novels and comics have been filled with memorable characters.

While this wouldn’t be viable if the director sets the movie in the Sequel Trilogy era, we’d love a movie that focuses on Wedge Antilles (otherwise known as the only Rebel pilot that helped blow up two different Death Stars).

Michael Stackpole’s Rogue Squadron novels also introduced Corran Horn, a fan-favorite Star Wars EU character who could very easily become the new face of the franchise.

The final reason I think Patty Jenkins’ Star Wars: Rogue Squadron could save the franchise is that Andor has already proven how much fans want to see the inner workings of the Rebellion.

Whether the film is set in the Rebellion era or the Sequel era, it has the chance to fix the franchise’s major weakness: Star Wars focuses so much on Jedi and other legendary heroes that we don’t get to learn much about the everyday people who help keep the Empire (or the First Order) at bay. 

A movie focusing on elite pilots could help us (like Andor before it) learn more about the Average Joes who keep a galaxy far, far away safe when the Jedi are busy figuring out if Palpatine has “somehow” returned again.

I’ll be the first to admit that my belief in Patty Jenkins’ Star Wars movie saving the franchise is more hope than anything else, but as Jyn Erso points out, rebellions are built on hope.

Honestly, the first Star Wars film was an act of faith that worked out: a combination of editing, music, and killer special effects transformed what would have been a flop into the most influential movie of all time.

Here’s hoping that Rogue Squadron stays on target; if not, this franchise may be doomed to crash and burn quicker than Porkins slamming into the Death Star.