Here's Exactly Where 'Solo' Exists In The 'Star Wars' Timeline
You probably could've guessed where Solo: A Star Wars Story exists on the ever-expanding Star Wars timeline. Thanks to a nifty timeline created by Del Rey books, however, you can now know exactly when the latest Star Wars spin-off film is set. Get the details on the Solo timeline below!
It's pretty obvious that Solo is set sometime after Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and sometime before Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. But if you wanted a more specific answer about the Solo timeline, Del Rey books is here to help. Via a pretty neat-looking visual timeline showing where the many, many Star Wars tie-in books take place in the larger timeline, we can now pinpoint Solo's location. Here's a screenshot.
There you have it. The film slightly after Star Wars: Episode III, and a little bit before both the animated Star Wars Rebels and the other Star Wars spin-off film, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. As you can also see, the book Last Shot: A Han and Lando Novel leads directly into Solo. It's one of several tie-in books being released around the time of the new Star Wars film. Here's a synopsis for the book, which may or may not provide us with some plot details for Solo:
THEN: It's one of the galaxy's most dangerous secrets: a mysterious transmitter with unknown power and a reward for its discovery that most could only dream of claiming. But those who fly the Millennium Falcon throughout its infamous history aren't your average scoundrels. Not once, but twice, the crew of the Falcon tries to claim the elusive prize—first, Lando Calrissian and the droid L3-37 at the dawn of an ambitious career, and later, a young and hungry Han Solo with the help of his copilot, Chewbacca. But the device's creator, the volatile criminal Fyzen Gor, isn't interested in sharing. And Gor knows how to hold a grudge. . . .
NOW: It's been ten years since the rebel hero Han Solo last encountered Fyzen Gor. After mounting a successful rebellion against the Empire and starting a family with an Alderaanian princess, Han hasn't given much thought to the mad inventor. But when Lando turns up at Han's doorstep in the middle of the night, it's Fyzen's assassins that he's running from. And without Han's help, Lando—and all life on Cloud City—will be annihilated.
With the assistance of a young hotshot pilot, an Ewok slicer prodigy, the woman who might be the love of Lando's life, and Han's best and furriest friend, the two most notorious scoundrels in the New Republic are working together once more. They'll have to journey across the stars—and into the past—before Gor uses the device's power to reshape the galaxy.
One interesting bit of info that this timeline reveals is what happens after Solo. As you'll recall, Rogue One ends literally minutes before A New Hope begins. Solo, in contrast, leaves some room between itself and A New Hope. In other words, don't expect Solo to conclude with Han meeting a young Luke Skywalker at the Mos Eisley cantina.
Solo: A Star Wars Story opens on May 25, 2018.