Why ‘Star Wars’ Shows Are Being Rescheduled
“Always on the move.” This is how Obi-Wan Kenobi describes his apprentice Anakin Skywalker in Revenge of the Sith. But I’d also say it fits to describe the schedules for Disney’s current content. Just today, we were given a plethora of trailers, reveals and updates in regards to Lucasfilm’s newest Star Wars series coming to Disney+. Among these announcements were a new trailer for Andor, the first teaser for Season 3 of The Mandalorian, and a confirmed release date for Season 2 of The Bad Batch. The animated show’s newest season was rumored to have been delayed following the move of Andor’s premiere date from August 31 to September 21. At one point, the season was even reported to begin streaming on September 28, which would’ve put the series on track to release alongside Andor. But now this no longer seems to be the case. During D23, The Bad Batch’s second season was confirmed to premiere on January 4 of next year, roughly a month after Andor finishes airing. In addition, The Mandalorian’s third season has had its premiere date moved from February 2023 to simply just 2023.
Many of the current Star Wars streaming shows are having their release dates altered as we near the end of the year. I feel that the rescheduling of these series comes to down to a single main factor; competition. Most have speculated that Andor’s release date was changed so as not to compete with other major streaming series airing in August; She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, House of the Dragon, and The Rings of Power. Each of these streaming shows is highly budgeted and connected to major franchises, one of which is also being aired by Disney. Therefore, it makes sense that Andor would be moved to September so as not to have to compete with such highly anticipated projects. As a result of Andor being rescheduled, the subsequent Star Wars series seem to be getting pushed back so as not to cannibalize viewership by competing with one another. The Bad Batch Season 2, originally having a 2022 release date, has been moved to 2023 so as not to compete with Andor. In turn, Season 3 of The Mandalorian may have been pushed back from a February release so as not to overshadow The Bad Batch while that show’s second season airs from January to April of 2023.
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With so many different projects coming out in such a short period, it only seemed inevitable that drastic rescheduling was going to occur. Despite the frustration of waiting, however, I ultimately think Disney is making the right call here. After seeing how much Obi-Wan Kenobi overshadowed Ms. Marvel this year, I think the company is going out of its way to make sure each of its projects can stand on their own without having to compete with projects either outside or within their own franchises. At the end of the day, I want each of these shows to do the best they possibly can when it comes to viewership and longevity. If that means we have to wait a few more months to watch them, then so be it.
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