We were totally enraptured by the trailer for “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” and it’s left us desperately wanting to know a few things, starting with…
Where and when does this ground battle with the Imperial walkers take place?
The environment here resembles the jungle of Yavin IV, site of the Rebels’ secret base in the original “Star Wars.” But “Rogue One” takes place before that film, after which the base remains a secret. So either the battle depicted in the trailer takes place somewhere else, or the film works some kind of narrative wizardry to make sense of a battle there. Or it could be as simple as the new film looking beyond the original “Star Wars” to the aftermath of the Battle of Yavin. For now, it’s still unclear.
Is Diego Luna playing Biggs Darklighter? Or maybe Kyle Katarn?
Biggs was Luke Skywalker’s childhood friend, whom Luke caught up with once he joined the Rebellion, and eventually led in a trench run to destroy the Death Star that claimed Biggs’ life. Luna sports a mustache similar to the one Biggs wore in the original “Star Wars.”
In the now-defunct Expanded Universe, Kyle Katarn was the one who stole the Death Star plans in the video game “Dark Forces.” Despite axing that story from the canon, LucasFilm has said it will draw upon old EU sources for inspiration. Could Diego Luna, who sports an outfit similar to one worn by Katarn, be playing a new version of the old hero? Also: Felicity Jones‘ character is named Jyn Erso, which feels like a nod to Jan Ors, the name of Katarn’s girlfriend.
Who is the cloaked figure?
We only get a brief glimpse from behind of him/her kneeling before whatever that beam of light is, but there are other clues. Namely, the red Imperial Guards, who are charged with protecting the Emperor. It could be Darth Vader, whose appearance in “Rogue One” has long been rumored. Or it could be another sinister servant of the Emperor.
Who is Ben Mendelsohn‘s Imperial admiral?
Mendelsohn is wearing a uniform made famous by fan favorite “Star Wars” Expanded Universe character Grand Admiral Thrawn. But Thrawn was a blue humanoid alien, and Mendelsohn is definitely not wearing blue paint here. In “Star Wars: A New Hope,” we see an admiral named Wullf Yularen on the Death Star wearing one of these white uniforms, but he’s much older than Mendelsohn. Even in the [still canon] “Clone Wars” series, in which he has a supporting role, Yularen had the same mustache he sported in “Star Wars,” so it’s unlikely Mendelsohn is playing that part.
Will we see other old Rebel heroes or Imperial villains?
A tricky proposition, since the cast of the original trilogy are either really old or dead, and “Rogue One” takes place before those movies, but we do get a new version of Rebel leader Mon Mothma here.
There had been rumors about casting a new actor as Grand Moff Tarkin with a very CGI’d face, as well as the previously mentioned Vader rumors. It’s not difficult to imagine Jimmy Smits, who played Bail Organa (Princess Leia’s adopted father) in the prequels, popping up as well. That the actress who plays Mon Mothma also appeared in that role in “Revenge of the Sith” leads some credence to that possibility. Characters from the computer-animated “Star Wars Rebels” TV show could be prime candidates as well.
Where is Mads Mikkelsen?
The “Rogue One trailer gave us glimpses of all the other name members of the cast — Felicity Jones, Ben Mendelsohn, Diego Luna, Forest Whitaker, Donnie Yen and Wen Jiang. But the “Hannibal” actor is notably absent, and we still don’t know what role he plays in all of this.
