Summary

• Star Wars TV shows span multiple eras & hundreds of years, making tracking the timeline challenging.
• Disney+ changed Star Wars TV production, making most shows fit canon & connect with films.
• From animation to live-action, Star Wars shows like The Mandalorian & The Acolyte explore different periods.

Keeping track of Star Wars movies.

Star Wars’ TV shows were usually synonymous with animation due to series such as Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels. This began to change with The Mandalorian, Star Wars’ first live-action series. The Mandalorian opened the door for other live-action Star Wars shows to be produced and even set up its own “pocket universe” within the Star Wars franchise. That said, animated shows are still a huge part of Star Wars' TV output. From The Acolyte to Star Wars Resistance, here is when each canon Star Wars TV show takes place in the Star Wars timeline.

Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures

200 BBY

One of Lucasfilm's latest animated ventures in Star Wars TV is Young Jedi Adventures. Despite being a recent entry for Star Wars, the setting of the show dates it as the furthest back in the Star Wars timeline. Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures is set during the High Republic era, around 200 years before the timeline of The Phantom Menace. The series centers on a group of Jedi younglings in the midst of the High Republic learning to become Jedi Knights and ties into the novels of the High Republic.

Star Wars: The Acolyte

132 BBY

The Acolyte is a live-action Star Wars High Republic show that will take place around 100 years before Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. This timeframe places The Acolyte in the High Republic's final years, making it the first Star Wars show in chronological order as of now. The Acolyte cast includes names such as Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Jodie Turner-Smith.

Star Wars has been recently diving into the High Republic era, a period that ranges from 300 BBY to 82 BBY, in comics and novels. However, The Acolyte will be the first live-action Star Wars production to go that far back in the Star Wars timeline. Emmy-nominated Leslye Headland is the writer and executive producer, and the show is being described as a mystery thriller about the emergence of the dark side in the galaxy.

Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi

? - 18 BBY

Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi is an anthology series designed to explore different points in the lives of established Star Wars characters. Tales of the Jedi season 1 was focused on Ahsoka Tano and Count Dooku, with three episodes dedicated to each. Essentially, each Tales of the Jedi episode covered a different point in the timelines of Ahsoka and Dooku. As a result, Tales of the Jedi season 1 spans multiple years. The furthest back it went in the Star Wars timeline was with season 1, episode 2, “Legacies," which followed a young Count Dooku in an undisclosed period.

However, it can be concluded that “Legacies” took place somewhere between 68 BBY and 58 BBY. The rest of the Tales of the Jedi episodes cover periods relatively close to the events of the Star Wars prequels, going from right before a few years before The Phantom Menace to around a year after Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. More specifically, the final minutes of Tales of the Jedi season 1, episode 6, “Resolve” take place in 18 BBY, when Ahsoka was already somewhat of a rebel running from the Empire.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

22 BBY – 19 BBY*

Whereas George Lucas decided to skip most of the Clone Wars in the Star Wars prequels, Star Wars: The Clone Wars dives into that conflict for seven seasons. The show follows many different clone battalions and Jedi, including Anakin and Obi-Wan, throughout the three years of the Clone Wars. Although many of the Clone Wars episodes are self-contained chapters and thus are interchangeable, Clone Wars' chronological order gives a much better watching experience.

In fact, in the later seasons of the show, arcs like Ahsoka's departure from the order and Darth Maul's Mandalore takeover would span for three or more episodes. Clone Wars' place in the Star Wars timeline becomes even more important in season 7, as the Clone Wars finale takes place concurrently with Revenge of the Sith. The Clone Wars starts shortly after Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones in 22 BBY and ends with Order 66 in 19 BBY. That said, Clone Wars' finale includes a flashforward set sometime after Revenge of the Sith.

Star Wars: Tales of the Empire

20 BBY - 9 ABY

A sequel to Tales of the Jedi, Star Wars: Tales of the Empire follows the same anthology format and focuses on two characters: former Jedi Barriss Offee and Nightsister survivor Morgan Elsbeth. Both arcs feature opening episodes set during the last year of the Clone Wars - with Tales of the Empire episode 4, "Devoted," set just after Order 66. There are few exact dates, but episode 6 appears to be towards the end of the Dark Times, while episode 3 is in 9 ABY, setting up Ahsoka Tano's feud with Morgan Elsbeth.

Star Wars: The Bad Batch

19 BBY – 17 BBY

Star Wars: The Bad Batch starts right after the Clone Wars' finale. The Clone Wars spin-off show focused on The Bad Batch season 3 expanding its timeline.

Obi-Wan Kenobi

9 BBY

Obi-Wan Kenobi is set 10 years after the events of Revenge of the Sith, which places it nine years before A New Hope. That is why Obi-Wan Kenobi's Luke and Leia are still children, and why Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) does not look as old as he did in A New Hope. The 9 BBY timeframe makes it so that Obi-Wan Kenobi works as the perfect transition between the prequels and the original trilogy. Obi-Wan Kenobi helps connect the stories of prequel-era Obi-Wan and Anakin to their original trilogy counterparts.

Andor

5 BBY – 0 BBY

Andor is a Rogue One spin-off set five years before the events of the film. Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), who dies at the end of Rogue One, is the central character of this spy thriller set during the early days of the rebellion. Cassian Andor is an experienced rebel spy by the time audiences meet him in Rogue One, and Andor sees how he became the pragmatic yet always hopeful character seen in the movie. Andor season 2 is confirmed for a 2024 release and while Andor season 1 spans one year, the sophomore entry will cover four years.

Star Wars Rebels

5 BBY – 0 BBY*

Star Wars Rebels begins five years before the Battle of Yavin and follows a rebel cell on Lothal. Rebels went on for four seasons, with Rebels season 4 taking place quite close to the events of A New Hope. Whereas each Clone Wars arc follows a different set of Star Wars characters, Rebels is centered on the crew of the Ghost from start to finish. Rebels was Disney's first Star Wars project and has since become an essential part of the Star Wars universe. Star Wars Rebels' ending also includes an epilogue set after Return of the Jedi.

The Mandalorian

9 ABY – TBD

The Mandalorian's timeline has become one of Star Wars' most complicated canon discussions. The Mandalorian season 1 was set five years after Return of the Jedi, or nine years after the Battle of Yavin. There was no reason to believe that The Mandalorian season 2 involved a major time jump, and so it was assumed that The Mandalorian season 2 was set around 9 ABY as well. The same applies to the gap between The Mandalorian season 2's finale and The Book of Boba Fett, as well as the transition from The Book of Boba Fett to The Mandalorian season 3.

The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau changed that perception by stating that the first three seasons of The Mandalorian span several years. In addition, Favreau believed that Grogu spent a couple of years training with Luke Skywalker. However, according to 2023's Star Wars Timelines - an official Star Wars timeline reference material - both The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett take place in 9 ABY.

It is still unclear how Star Wars will resolve its Mandalorian timeline problem. However, as of now, the adventures of Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Grogu officially do not involve any major gaps and when The Mandalorian will end in the timeline remains a mystery. With The Mandalorian & Grogu movie now in the mix, it's only become more unclear where The Mandalorian TV show's timeline officially ends.

The Book of Boba Fett

9 ABY

While the Boba Fett character predates even The Empire Strikes Back - as he originated in the Star Wars Holiday Special - The Book of Boba Fett was born as a Mandalorian spin-off. Picking up right where The Mandalorian season 2 ended, The Book of Boba Fett sees Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison) fight to maintain his position as Tatooine's crime boss following the deaths of Jabba the Hutt and Bib Fortuna. The show also flashbacks to the time of Boba Fett's supposed death in Return of the Jedi to reveal how Boba Fett survived the Sarlacc and his return in The Mandalorian.

Ahsoka

9-10 ABY

Ahsoka's place in the Star Wars timeline was initially as tricky as The Book of Boba Fett's. Disney+'s Ahsoka show was initially said to take place concurrently with The Mandalorian season 3, making it the t most recent entry in the Mandoverse - though this was confused by Favreau's comments on The Mandalorian's timeline. However, the events of Ahsoka episode 7 cleared this confusion somewhat by confirming that Ahsoka takes place shortly after The Mandalorian season 3. The events of the latter's season 3 finale were referenced, confirming that Ahsoka is seemingly set around 9 to 10 ABY.

Skeleton Crew

9-10 ABY

Skeleton Crew, an live-action Star Wars show, is confirmed to take place in the same era as The Mandalorian. Jon Watts, who directed the MCU's Spider-Man movies, is the creator of the series. Skeleton Crew sees Jude Law as the lead, and it follows the journey of four kids trying to find their way home. Given that Skeleton Crew is part of the Mandoverse, its timeline is also tied to The Mandalorian's timeline problem. With all The Mandalorian era shows supposedly taking place in 9 ABY, Skeleton Crew should also be set around 9 ABY or 10 ABY.

Star Wars Resistance

34 ABY – 35 ABY

Star Wars Resistance begins less than a year before the destruction of the New Republic by the First Order in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Considering how the events of the two-season show span for a bit more than a year, Star Wars Resistance intersects both The Force Awakens and Star Wars: The Last Jedi. For example, during Star Wars Resistance season 2, Kylo Ren had already become Supreme Leader after Snoke died in The Last Jedi. Star Wars: Resistance ends before the events of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

All Star Wars movies and TV shows are available to stream on Disney+