60 Fun Facts About Rogue One

Who directed Rogue One: A Star Wars Story?

He had made Godzilla (2014) and wanted Rogue One to play as a war film with no crawl and no screen wipes.

How long before the events of the original 1977 Star Wars is Rogue One set?

It ends with the plans reaching Princess Leia's ship, which is exactly where A New Hope picks up.

Which visual effects supervisor first pitched the Rogue One story in 2003 for Star Wars: Underworld?

His short treatment was called 'Destroyer of Worlds', and he pitched it again after Disney bought Lucasfilm rather than forever wonder what might have happened.

On which planet are the Ersos hiding when Orson Krennic arrives in the opening scene?

Jyn's mother Lyra is killed in the confrontation, and Saw Gerrera rescues the girl from her hiding place.

From which Imperial labour camp is Jyn freed by the Rebels?

Mon Mothma then persuades her to find her father so the Alliance can learn about the superweapon.

What does the Empire loot from the moon of Jedha to power the Death Star?

Krennic's test-fire on the Death Star wipes out Jedha City, and Saw Gerrera chooses to stay behind and die.

On which planet is Galen Erso's Imperial research facility, the target of a Rebel bombing raid?

Its rain-lashed mountains were filmed near Mýrdalssandur; the tropical vault planet, by contrast, was shot in the Maldives.

Cassian Andor is secretly ordered to do what, rather than extract Galen Erso?

He hesitates at the research facility, and Galen dies in Jyn's arms after the Rebel bombing run instead.

Who names the stolen Imperial cargo shuttle 'Rogue One'?

Edwards said the title had three meanings: a military call sign, the 'rogue' film outside the saga, and Jyn's personality.

How is the planetary shield generator over Scarif finally destroyed?

Admiral Raddus uses an Alliance ship to shove one Star Destroyer into the other, and the wreckage falls onto the gate.

Who plays Jyn Erso?

Mara and Maslany were also assessed for the lead in January 2015 before Jones was cast that March.

Which Mexican actor plays Cassian Andor and later led the prequel series Andor?

Ramírez and Aaron Paul were reportedly eyed for the male lead before Luna joined in May 2015.

Which Australian actor plays Imperial weapons director Orson Krennic?

Krennic ends up Force-choked by Vader and finally vaporised by his own weapon's beam on Scarif.

Alan Tudyk provides the voice and motion capture for which character?

The reprogrammed Imperial enforcer droid sacrifices himself in the vault, and Marvel later published a one-shot about his first meeting with Cassian.

Which Hong Kong martial-arts star plays the blind, Force-believing warrior of Jedha?

Disney built its Asian marketing around him, with his own posters and multilingual video greetings to fans.

The blind warrior and his companion Baze Malbus are former members of which order?

Greg Rucka's 2017 novel Guardians of the Whills fills in their backstory on Jedha before the Imperial occupation.

Which Danish actor plays Galen Erso, the scientist who builds a secret flaw into the Death Star?

One reviewer suggested the film could be retitled 'Rogue One: an Engineering Ethics Story' for its take on his choice.

Which Oscar winner plays Saw Gerrera, the Clone Wars veteran who raised Jyn?

Warwick Davis appears as Weeteef Cyubee, one of Saw's Partisans.

Riz Ahmed's character, the defector who carries Galen's message, had been what in the Empire?

He carries Galen's holographic message to Saw, and later dies from a grenade after telling the fleet to drop the shield.

Grand Moff Tarkin was played on set by Guy Henry with whose digital likeness superimposed?

Lucasfilm secured permission from the late actor's estate, which had input down to 'small, subtle adjustments'; the result still drew 'uncanny valley' criticism.

Which Norwegian actress provided the face over which a young Carrie Fisher was digitally mapped as Leia?

Archival audio of Fisher saying 'hope' was used for the line, and Fisher herself was shown the result and loved it.

Which two X-wing pilots appear via unused footage from A New Hope?

Angus MacInnes recorded new lines for Dutch Vander, while dialogue for the late Drewe Henley's Garven Dreis was assembled from archive material.

Which director-and-producer duo from The Last Jedi cameo as two Death Star technicians?

Dave Filoni does appear, reprising a voice role from Star Wars Rebels.

Which Star Wars Rebels droid makes a cameo, voiced by Dave Filoni?

Genevieve O'Reilly also returned as Mon Mothma, a role she had first played in the prequel era.

Which screenwriter got $5 million and a shared credit for rewriting and directing the reshoots?

He went on to create Andor; Whitta wrote the first draft and Chris Weitz continued it before the reshoots.

How did the main characters fare in the original version of the script?

Edwards assumed Disney would never allow a dark ending; the producers preferred tragedy and the survival version was never shot.

Which traditional Star Wars element does Rogue One deliberately omit at the start?

Edwards said the film was 'born out of a crawl' and that adding one would create another movie.

At which studio did principal photography begin in August 2015?

The film was shot with Ultra Panavision 70 lenses on Arri Alexa 65 6K digital cameras.

Which country's black-sand beach at Reynisfjara stood in for the Erso homestead?

The Krafla crater and Lake Mývatn rock formations were also used, and mountains near Mýrdalssandur became the research-facility planet.

Which Middle Eastern desert and which ancient fortress were used to represent Jedha?

Wadi Rum in Jordan is a science-fiction favourite, having doubled for Mars and Arrakis elsewhere.

Which London Underground station was closed overnight to film a chase through an Imperial base?

Pymmes Park in Edmonton and Cardington Airfield, used for Yavin 4, were other unglamorous English locations.

According to UK tax filings, roughly how much did the film cost to make before tax breaks?

Early reports said $200 million; UK production tax relief brought the net cost down to about $232 million.

Who composed the score after Alexandre Desplat dropped out?

He started almost the moment he finished Doctor Strange and wove some of John Williams' themes into his own.

How much time did the replacement composer have to write the score?

He came straight off scoring Doctor Strange; an extended soundtrack with unused cues followed in 2022.

Which studio's similarly titled 2015 release forced Disney to embargo early promotion?

Paramount had cleared its title with the MPAA first, so Disney agreed to embargo promotion until after mid-2015.

What tagline appeared on the poster unveiled at Star Wars Celebration Europe in 2016?

The poster showed the battle on Scarif with the Death Star looming in a blue sky.

The second teaser's biggest reveal was Darth Vader, glimpsed how?

His breathing was the giveaway; the final Vader corridor scene was the very last thing shot, entirely with digital tools.

Which broadcast was the second trailer shown publicly during?

Wired called it 'littered with nostalgic throwbacks', and Rolling Stone praised the CGI landscapes as 'eye-poppingly gorgeous'.

Which prequel novel by James Luceno, released a month before the film, tells the Ersos' backstory?

Beth Revis's Rebel Rising later covered Jyn's missing years, and Alexander Freed wrote the film's novelisation.

Which 2015 video game received a Rogue One: Scarif expansion with Jyn and Krennic as playable characters?

A free PlayStation VR mission came with it, and a Disney Infinity play set was cancelled along with that series.

Where did Rogue One hold its world premiere on 10 December 2016?

US release followed on 16 December, and China got it on 6 January 2017.

Approximately how much did Rogue One gross worldwide?

It was the second-highest-grossing film of 2016, and Deadline put its net profit at about $320 million.

How much did the film take in its US opening weekend?

That was the third-biggest debut of 2016; $29 million came from Thursday previews alone.

Which film finally knocked Rogue One off the top of the US box office in its fourth weekend?

Sunday projections had Rogue One narrowly ahead, but Monday's final figures put it $900,000 behind.

For which two categories did Rogue One receive Academy Award nominations?

It won neither, though critics widely praised Greig Fraser's cinematography and Giacchino's score.

Which new character topped a May 2017 poll of 50,000-plus fans on the official Star Wars site?

The reprogrammed droid was the other breakout, and Kermode compared Jyn to Ellen Ripley in Aliens.

How did George Lucas reportedly react to Rogue One?

Edwards responded, 'I can die happy now', and the reshoots' writer got a call from Lucas saying he loved it.

How many years before Rogue One is the Disney+ series Andor set when it begins?

Its two seasons ran from September 2022 to May 2025, and Disney re-released the film in IMAX to promote the premiere.

Which Star Wars film had Genevieve O'Reilly first played Mon Mothma in?

Her scenes were largely cut from that film, and she went on to a much bigger version of the role in Andor.

Whose likeness prompted a 2024 'unjust enrichment' lawsuit against Disney by a friend of the late actor?

Kevin Francis claimed the actor had made clear he did not want his likeness reused without consent.

Which senator does Jonathan Aris play, in a role announced in July 2015?

Fares Fares and Sharon Duncan-Brewster play the other two named senators on the Alliance Council.

Which military-news writer praised details like worn paint and 'bitter stoicism'?

He called it the Star Wars film that best reflects real military experience, right down to Lt. Sefla's muzzle discipline.

Who was announced in May 2014 as Rogue One's original screenwriter, before Chris Weitz took over?

Whitta finished his work in January 2015, and the title Rogue One was officially revealed that March.

What was the title of John Knoll's short 2003 treatment that became the seed of Rogue One?

He pitched it during Revenge of the Sith production and again after the Disney acquisition, fearing he would forever wonder 'what might've happened'.

Which two actresses were assessed for the lead alongside Felicity Jones in January 2015?

Aaron Paul and Édgar Ramírez were meanwhile eyed for the male lead that eventually went to Diego Luna.

Islands of which atoll in the Maldives stood in for the tropical planet Scarif?

The islands of Gan and Baresdhoo were used, along with the former RAF Bovingdon airfield in England.

Scenes set on the Rebel base planet Yavin 4 were filmed at which English airfield?

Pymmes Park in Edmonton, London, was another location, while Iceland's Krafla area and Lake Mývatn rock formations also featured.

Which two performers physically played Darth Vader in Rogue One, with James Earl Jones voicing him?

Wilding appeared in the Krennic meeting and Star Destroyer scenes; Naprous played the corridor rampage at the end.

Alexandre Desplat left Rogue One to score which 2017 Luc Besson space film?

Michael Giacchino stepped in in September 2016, almost immediately after finishing Doctor Strange.

Which comics writer penned the 2017 tie-in novel Guardians of the Whills about Chirrut and Baze?

Beth Revis's Rebel Rising, released the same day, covered Jyn's life between her mother's death and her rescue from Wobani.