Star Wars has always pulled from multiple genres to create its own. While making the original film, George Lucas mashed-up World War II movies, fairy tales, Arthurian fantasy, coming of age stories, along with several other genres. But with the advent of Star Wars Story movies, Disney has the flexibility to experiment with dedicated genres, but with a Star Wars-esque twist. We’ve seen Rogue One as a straight up war movie, and the Solo film is rumored to be a heist film, so what genres can Star Wars tackle next? Here are our top seven picks:
Westerns
Although technically a Western refers to the American west during the 19th century, the tropes used in Western storytelling abound in many narratives. Firefly was a Western in space, and the recent Logan was a superhero Western. With its dusty desert worlds like Tatooine and Jakku, filled with gunslingers and lawless tribes, it seem like only a matter of time before we get a Star Wars Western, and I’m betting it will be the Obi-Wan solo film.
Political Thriller
Much like Marvel’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier combined superheroics with the vibe of ’70s political thrillers (The Manchurian Candidate and 3 Days of the Condor) Star Wars do something similar. We know that the Old Republic was filled with corrupt politicians with their own agendas–most obviously Senator Palpatine–but the Empire was also filled with political types who would stab each other in the back to ascend higher in the eyes of the Emperor. Any of these scenarios could make for an interesting political thriller.
Comedy
Despite what some naysayers have been saying about the jokes used in The Last Jedi, the truth is that humor has always been a part of Star Wars, ever since R2 and 3PO started bickering, and Han Solo blasted a console due to a very boring conversation. A comedic Star Wars film, maybe something in the vein of the old EU “Tag and Bink” series, would feel pretty natural. As long as it doesn’t turn into a Spaceballs redux, it could be great.
Horror
Due to Star Wars being a PG-13 franchise, a Star Wars horror film sounds unlikely. But if the animated Clone Wars found a way to do Star Wars horror, there is no reason that a live-action movie couldn’t do the exact same thing. The season two episode of Clone Wars called “Brain Invaders” essentially had Jedi fighting zombies, and actual zombies appeared later in the series. Now imagine a Sith Lord or other Dark Force wielder using his abilities to make undead stormtroopers that Jedi must fight off. How cool would that be?
Kaiju
This is another genre that the animated Clone Wars once tackled, when they had the Jedi fight a thinly veiled Godzilla knock-off called “the Zillo Beast.” While resurrecting the Zillo beast for a live-action movie might be a little too insular, a giant monster from the Outer Rim could make for a surprisingly great threat. Just what good are a bunch of blasters and laser swords against a giant monster? I don’t know about you, but I’d pay good money to find out!
Crime Thriller
This one should be a no brainer, since the criminal underworld has been a part of Star Wars lore since the very first film, when we were introduced to the idea of space smugglers who run jobs for intergalactic crime bosses. It just so happens that in this universe, the crime bosses are giant slugs. Because of the known existence of a vast underworld in the Star Wars galaxy, a crime thriller would be a logical step.
Romance
Star Wars has always had a romance element, ever since Leia and Han smooched on the Millennium Falcon. But would Lucasfilm ever attempt an epic romance like Titanic space? One could argue the prequels tried to do that with Anakin and Padme, but what if we had two leads that actually have chemistry? It seems Star Wars would be the natural fit for a story on two star crossed lovers. Maybe a Rebel who loves an Imperial? The potential is there for sure.
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Which movie genres would you like to see Lucasfilm take on for the next stand alone Star Wars Story? Let us know your thoughts down below in the comments.
Images: Lucasfilm
Even more Star Wars theories
- Is Ewan McGregor secretly prepping for an Obi-Wan movie?
- Here’s what really happened to Ben Solo’s old lightsaber
- The Last Jedi similar to The Empire Strikes Backis remarkably
