Galactic Empire (Star Wars) in the context of "Universe of Star Wars"

Star Wars (also known as Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope) is a 1977 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas, produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. and released by Twentieth Century-Fox. It is the first film in the Star Wars franchise and the fourth chronological chapter of the "Skywalker Saga". Set in a fictional galaxy under the rule of the tyrannical Galactic Empire, the film follows a resistance movement, called the Rebel Alliance, that aims to destroy the Empire's ultimate weapon, the Death Star. When the rebel leader Princess Leia is captured by the Galactic Empire, Luke Skywalker acquires stolen architectural plans for the Death Star and sets out to rescue her while learning the ways of a metaphysical power known as "the Force" from the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. The cast includes Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Cushing, Alec Guinness, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, David Prowse, and James Earl Jones.

Lucas had the idea for a science fiction film in the vein of Flash Gordon around the time he completed his first film, THX 1138 (1971), and he began working on a treatment after the release of American Graffiti (1973). After numerous rewrites, principal photography began in March of 1976 in locations including Tunisia and Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire, England. Lucas formed the visual effects company Industrial Light & Magic to help create the film's visual effects. Star Wars suffered production difficulties: the cast and crew believed the film would be a failure, and it went $3 million over budget due to delays.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is a 2016 American epic space opera film directed by Gareth Edwards and written by Chris Weitz and Tony Gilroy. Produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the first Star Wars anthology film and a prequel to Star Wars (1977). It stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen, Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Riz Ahmed, Jiang Wen, and Forest Whitaker. Set a week before the events of Star Wars, Rogue One follows rebels who steal the schematics for the Galactic Empire's ultimate weapon, the Death Star. It details the Rebel Alliance's first effective victory against the Empire, as referenced in the Star Wars opening crawl.

John Knoll, who served as the visual effects supervisor of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, pitched Rogue One's story as an episode of the unproduced television series Star Wars: Underworld in 2003. He pitched it again as a film following Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm in 2012; Edwards was hired to direct in 2014. Edwards sought to differentiate Rogue One from previous Star Wars films and approach it as a war film, omitting the opening crawl and transitional screen wipes used in the main "Skywalker Saga" installments. Principal photography began at Pinewood Studios, Buckinghamshire, in early August 2015 and wrapped in February 2016. The film went through extensive reshoots in mid-2016. The score was composed by Michael Giacchino, rather than the Skywalker Saga composer John Williams. With an estimated production budget of $200–280.2 million, Rogue One is one of the most expensive films ever made.

The Rebel Alliance (known formally in-universe as the Alliance to Restore the Republic), also known simply as the Rebellion, is an organization that appears in the fictional world of the Star Wars franchise. The Alliance is portrayed as a stateless coalition of rebel dissidents and defectors who oppose the Galactic Empire and its authoritarian rule. Its stated goal is to restore the governance of the previous Galactic Republic, which had been dissolved after its leader Palpatine seized absolute power and declared himself emperor. It is the main protagonistic faction of the original Star Wars trilogy.

In the Star Wars universe, the rebel insurgency conducts covert operations on Imperial garrison worlds, utilizing a stateless strategy in conjunction with wolfpack-guerrilla warfare against the Imperial fleet throughout the galaxy. Capital ships are portrayed as having no place in the Rebellion, as they are described as logistically expensive to build, maintain, and to keep fully crewed. The Rebellion is portrayed as far too limited in both manpower and resources to justify putting so much of both into a giant target. The Galactic Empire, on the other hand, is portrayed as capable of always fielding greater numbers and greater firepower. Being able to hit high-valued targets and get out is therefore depicted as being much more important to the Rebellion. While the Empire labels all dissenters and rebels as extremists and terrorists in Imperial propaganda, the Alliance is depicted and portrayed in various Star Wars media as a group of resilient freedom fighters, based on tolerance, self-empowerment, and hope for a better future using insurgency weapons and tactics.

The Death Star is a fictional space station and superweapon featured in the Star Wars space-opera franchise. Constructed by the autocratic Galactic Empire, the Death Star is capable of obliterating entire planets, and serves to enforce the Empire's reign of terror. Appearing in the original film Star Wars (1977), the Death Star serves as the central plot point and setting for the film, and is destroyed in an assault by the Rebel Alliance during the climax of the film, with the prequel film Rogue One (2016) and the television series Andor (2022–2025) exploring its construction. A larger second Death Star is being built in the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983), featuring substantially improved capabilities compared to its predecessor, before it is destroyed by the Rebel Alliance while under construction.

Since its first appearance, the Death Star has become a cultural icon and a widely recognized element of the Star Wars franchise. It inspired numerous similar superweapons in fiction as well as in other Star Wars works. The film The Force Awakens (2015) introduces Starkiller Base, a planet (Ilum) converted by the First Order into a Death Star-like superweapon. While more powerful and technologically advanced than both Death Stars, it is also destroyed by the Resistance. The film The Rise of Skywalker (2019) introduces the Final Order, a massive fleet of Xyston-class Star Destroyers built by the Sith Eternal, individual warships each carrying "planet-killing" weapons; the film also features the remains of the second Death Star, on the ocean moon of Kef Bir.

Princess Leia Organa (/ˈleɪ.ə/ or /ˈliːə/) is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. Introduced in the original Star Wars film in 1977, Leia is a princess of the planet Alderaan, a member of the Imperial Senate, and an agent of the Rebel Alliance. She thwarts the Sith Lord Darth Vader and helps bring about the destruction of the Empire's superweapon, the Death Star. In The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Leia commands a Rebel base and evades Vader as she falls in love with the smuggler Han Solo. In Return of the Jedi (1983), she helps rescue Han from the crime lord Jabba the Hutt, and is revealed to be Vader's daughter and the twin sister of Luke Skywalker. Leia is portrayed by Carrie Fisher in the original film trilogy and the sequel trilogy.

The 2005 prequel film Revenge of the Sith reveals that Leia's mother is Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo, who dies after childbirth. Leia's father is Anakin Skywalker, a Jedi who falls to the dark side of the Force and becomes Darth Vader. After her mother's death, Leia is adopted by Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan and his wife, Queen Breha. In the sequel trilogy, Leia is a founder and General of the Resistance, which fights against the First Order. She and Han have a son named Ben Solo, who turned to the dark side and became the First Order warlord Kylo Ren. In The Rise of Skywalker (2019), it is revealed that Leia was trained as a Jedi by Luke sometime after the events of Return of the Jedi. Leia dies towards the end of the film but returns as a Force spirit alongside Luke.

Luke Skywalker is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. He was introduced in the original film trilogy as the main protagonist and also appears in the sequel trilogy. Raised as a moisture farmer on the desert planet Tatooine, Luke joins the Rebel Alliance and becomes a pivotal figure in its struggle against the Galactic Empire. He trains as a Jedi Knight under the Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, and eventually confronts his father, the Sith Lord Darth Vader. Years later, Luke trains his nephew Ben Solo and mentors the scavenger Rey. Luke is the twin brother of Leia Organa.

Mark Hamill portrays Luke in all the films of the original and sequel trilogies, as well as in the television series The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett. Hamill won the Saturn Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Luke in The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Return of the Jedi (1983) and The Last Jedi (2017). He was also nominated for the award for his performance in Star Wars (1977). Luke also appears in novels, comics, and video games.