Kathleen Kennedy Says Rogue One Probably Won’t Have An Opening Crawl

In an interview with ET Online, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said Rogue One and the rest of the Star Wars standalone films probably won’t have an opening crawl.

ET Online caught up with Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards at Star Wars Celebration Europe to talk about the possibility of an opening crawl in the latter film.

Kennedy’s answer was straightforward: an opening crawl is probably not going to happen in Rogue One or any of the Star Wars standalone films. She told ET:

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"“You know, we’re in the midst of talking about it, but I don’t think these films will have an opening crawl… I think that’s what we kind of telegraphed at the beginning of the event today.”"

Gareth Edwards chose to be more close and not say too much. But he, too, emphasized the fact they want to distinguish the standalone films from the saga episodes.

"“I think basically there’s a lot of things that I probably can’t talk about, is probably the safest way to answer that,” he joked. “The idea is this film is supposed to be different than the saga films…the whole crawl of it all — it’s funny people are fascinated on that.”"

On the other hand, the opening crawl of A New Hope inspired Rogue One‘s plot. It’s an intrinsic part of the formula, and Gareth hinted they may decide to preserve that.

"“This film is born out of a crawl. The thing that inspired this movie was a crawl and what was written in that,” Edwards said. “There’s this feeling that if we did a crawl, then it’ll create another movie. And so the honest answer is you’ll have to wait and see.”"

No opening crawl makes sense for Rogue One. There has to be something visual separating the standalone films from the episodes, and a different intro is a quick and easy way to accomplish that separation. There are already examples of Star Wars canon not having an opening crawl, like The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels animated series. Not having a crawl would really be nothing new.

Next: The New Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Trailer Described

What do you think? Do you care if there is an opening crawl in front of Rogue One? Will a crawl detract or enhance the film? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.