The highest grossing film of last year, The Force Awakens, brought the Star Wars franchise roaring back to life with over $2 billion dollars. Episode VII brought Star Wars back into the public eye after the prequel trilogy released in the early 2000s disappointed many long-time fans. However, the next Star Wars film of the franchise will not be Episode VIII, but rather Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which takes place between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope.

Rogue One will be the first in at least three planned Star Wars spin-off films that deviate from the new trilogy story line with characters Rey and Finn. Rogue One will focus on the efforts of the rebel alliance procuring the Death Star plans, the end result of which occurs in the opening scene of A New Hope.

Starring Felicity Jones as a rebel fighter, Rogue One will be directed by Godzilla director Gareth Edwards. Coming out Dec. 16, Rogue One will further expand on the Star Wars universe, following the amazing revival of the franchise at the hands of The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams.

The first trailer for Rouge One dropped this past Thursday. Showcasing scenes of the rebel alliance lead by the character Mon Mothma (played by Genevieve O’Reilly) from Return of the Jedi, and the construction of the first Death Star from A New Hope was incredibly surreal. On top of serving as the potential foundation for the original Star Wars trilogy, if well directed, Rogue One will certainly play to fans’ nostalgia.

There is some concern however. The trailer already showcased various CGI settings, which is disappointing after The Force Awakens was so progressive in shooting on location with practical effects. And the Star Wars series is no stranger to prequels with bad CGI; the prequel trilogy is a prime example of abuse of CGI, with the various settings of the movies being rendered in green screen when there was no need to do so. Nevertheless, it is common that effects in trailers are never the finished effect from the final film. Seeing the attacks on rebel bases are a blast from the past, as are the old school Stormtrooper suits.
One shot of Jones in Rogue One seems reminiscent of Katniss Everdeen gearing up for war inside what looks like a Capital hovercraft, yet this is likely coincidental. It is nice to see the latest Star Wars installment continue with the theme of featuring strong female leads after Daisy Ridley’s Rey in The Force Awakens. In all honesty, as this is Star Wars, no matter the quality of trailer, I, and millions of other people, will see the film regardless.