Rogue One: Complete collection of EW's coverage

The day Star Wars fans have been awaiting for nearly 40 years is here.

Rogue One, the story of how the Rebels stole the plans for the first Death Star, has finally hit theaters, and as part of EW’s ongoing coverage of the first standalone film in the franchise, here’s a look back at some of our recent coverage of the film.

For those who’ve been holding off, waiting for the chance to see Rogue One without knowing anything, this is your chance for a post-screening binge on the making of the galactic heist movie.

May the Force be with you.

This is a whole new stable of characters operating on the fringes of the world we know by heart. When you think about it, that’s pretty exciting. And it opens up a world of cinematic possibilities moving forward.

The stakes are greater than just one film, because the reaction to the first standalone will be a key decision-making factor as the company gathers its creative team together in early 2017 to decide on future movies to make.

Cue the heavy breathing. Darth Vader is alive, angry, and merciless. Here’s the story of his resurrection on the big screen as the eternal galactic menace.

It was a meeting at dawn in hushed restaurant when Felicity Jones found herself recruited for a covert mission: the lead role in the Star Wars soldier story Rogue One, as the big sister leading a band of Rebel brothers.

Star Wars fans, listen up … Ever since composer Michael Giacchino took over the last-minute job of scoring Rogue One, everyone has been wondering what a Star Wars movie will sound like with a new person stepping into the role so memorably filled by John Williams.

Here’s a guide to prepping your younglings for what’s in the movie, and suggestions for how to talk to them about the heavy emotions that may linger after the credits roll.

The following is an excerpt of a piece by Rogue One director Gareth Edwards in Entertainment Weekly’s collector’s edition of The Ultimate Guide to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. “I was just 2 years old when Star Wars: A New Hope first came out in the cinema. Being so young, I don’t really remember the world before it. It was just sort of always there.”

Ralph McQuarrie really is the Obi-Wan Kenobi of Star Wars. Even though he’s gone, his presence remains to guide the franchise forward.

The Star Wars universe is filled with X-wings, Y-wings, A-wings, and more, but Rogue One adds another letter of the alphabet to the Rebel fleet.

What is the wheel-shaped space station that an X-wing squadron is seen attacking in Rogue One? What you’re looking at is the Shield Gate, and the world below is Scarif, a tropical planet that is one of the Empire’s key military bases.

We’ve seen plenty of droids in the Star Wars universe, but none like the redemption-seeking Imperial security robot K-2SO in next month’s Rogue One. Although… we met his cousins on the planet Hoth, years ago.

This Rebel admiral gets his jowly look and demeanor from a real life figure: the Prime Minster of the United Kingdom during World War II. The British Bulldog himself. And Churchill isn’t the only famous face turning up in alien form…

The Imperial commander played by the late Peter Cushing in 1977’s original Star Wars has long been rumored to make an appearance in Rogue One, which takes place just prior to the events of that first film.

Below are stories from this summer’s first look at the movie:

Before Luke fired the blast that detonated the Death Star, before Leia launched R2-D2 to a remote desert world with secret plans for that battle station, someone had to locate and steal those schematics. Turns out, it was a team effort.

Who are Jyn Erso, Cassian Andor, K-2SO, and the white-clad villain known as Director Krennic?

Deathtroopers storming the beach, a crashed X-Wing fighter, Rebels bracing for battle … and a mysterious toy stormtrooper.

This shadowy freedom-fighter is Saw Gerrera, first seen in season 5 of The Clone Wars animated series. He’s a Rebel soldier so extreme the others aren’t sure he’s really a good guy.

“A film is a very creative, organic process, and it evolves over time,” director Gareth Edwards says. “There’s no right or wrong. There’s just ‘better’ and ‘best,’ and with Star Wars, nothing but the best is going to do. So we’re just putting a lot of pressure on ourselves until the very end, making this the greatest film it can be.”

She delivered the pilot briefing in Return of the Jedi about the second Death Star, ending with the ominous line: “Many Bothans died to bring us this information.” In Rogue One, Mothma plays a pivotal role in bringing about the destruction of the first Death Star, too.

Lucasfilm’s upcoming stand-alone movies are meant to be distinctive from the trilogy sagas, so the makers of the first one — Rogue One: A Star Wars Story ​— are trying to figure out how many traditional elements should be retained.

For those looking to immerse themselves further (or re-wallpaper their phone, laptop, or tablet), we present the images again in larger format.

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