Star Wars Resistance

"Our colleagues at Lucasfilm have created a compelling narrative for an untold moment in the Star Wars galaxy, and we are excited to partner with them again on this new original series. Star Wars Resistance will bring viewers across generations an engaging story with heart, humor and both new and familiar characters."

- Marc Buhaj, senior vice president, Programming and general manager, Disney XD

Star Wars Resistance is an upcoming animated television series set to premiere October 7, 2018, with regular airing on Disney XD. The series was created by Dave Filoni and executive produced by Athena Yvette Portillo, Justin Ridge, and Brandon Auman. It stars Christopher Sean, Suzie McGrath, Scott Lawrence, Myrna Velasco, Josh Brener, Donald Faison, Bobby Moynihan, Jim Rash, and Rachel Butera, with appearances from Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron and Gwendoline Christie as Captain Phasma.

The series is set prior to the events of Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens. It centers on the character of Kazuda Xiono, a young pilot in General Leia Organa's Resistance who is tasked with spying on the growing threat of the First Order.

Development
"So right now, Resistance is a bit different, in that I'm not on that day-to-day. I created and set it in motion, but I've given that to other people to raise up, people that I've worked with a long time, who I think deserve the opportunity to tell stories and I think it's exciting, and I give them my thoughts and notes – I was just doing that this morning, like George would give me. So that's fun."

- Dave Filoni on his involvement with the series

The series is created by Dave Filoni, head of Lucasfilm Animation who led the creative team on Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels; When the third season of Star Wars Rebels debuted, it was announced that Filoni had stepped down as Supervising Director, in favor of helping to develop "future animation development." Pablo Hidalgo revealed that Filoni and crew were working on the new series as of September 2017. In February 2018, it was reported that Lucasfilm filed a trademark for the name Star Wars Resistance. (Rumors of such a series had stetched back to 2014. ) The series was officially announced on April 26, 2018 for a debut in the fall of that year.

The inspiration for the series came from Filoni's interest in World War II aircrafts and fighter pilots, with his grandfather's time as a pilot during the war being a particular influence on him. In the announcement of the series, Filoni noted that the series would capture the sense of excitement around high-speed racing, which Star Wars has depicted in many stories over the years. Stylistically, the series is rendered in CG, with its designs based on anime.

The series is set between the events of Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi and Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens, in a time when the Resistance is still learning about the growing threat of the First Order. Though it features a largely new cast of characters, Star Wars Resistance will include appearances from Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron and Gwendoline Christie as Captain Phasma, reprising their roles from the sequel trilogy films. The astromech droid BB-8 will also feature heavily in the series.