At a Glance
Skeleton Crew’s first season released a two-episode premiere on December 2nd, 2024 and is currently running. It is rumored that a second season could occur, but nothing formal has been announced.
Key Facts
Release Date: Dec 2, 2024
Seasons: 1
Total Episodes: 8
Creator: Christopher Ford & Jon Watts
Where to Watch: Disney+
When: 5 years after Return of the Jedi
Recent Coverage
What is Skeleton Crew?
Skeleton Crew is a coming-of-age story about a group of four children who make a crucial discovery on their home planet, get lost in the galaxy, and must find their way home. Set during the New Republic Era, the show takes the children on a variety of adventures where they encounter fascinating characters like Jod Na Nawood, a mysterious Force user, a droid named SM-33, and even a pirate gang! Filled with classic Amblin style adventure reminiscent of The Goonies, Skeleton Crew aims to bring the fun of Star Wars center stage once more for the entire family.
Is Skeleton Crew for Kids?
Not exclusively! While Skeleton Crew is definitely appropriate for younger audiences and features young actors, the show fits perfectly inside the Star Wars universe just like The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, and other similar projects. During the show’s press tour, the creators were adamant about the realistic stakes of the series that took children inside situations of actual danger rather than pandering to a solely younger audience.
About Skeleton Crew
Jon Watts, Christopher Ford
Disney+
TV-PG
Adventure, Coming-of-age
32-47 minutes
1
8
Mick Giacchino
5 years after Return of the Jedi
Cast
When Does Skeleton Crew Take Place in the Star Wars Timeline?
Skeleton Crew is set in the Star Wars timeline approximately nine years after the events of Episode VI: Return of the Jedi and before the rise of the First Order, making it part of the era known as the New Republic period.
Reviews
Story and Characters
Skeleton Crew tells the story of a group of four children (Wim, Fern, Neel, KB) from At Attin who find themselves in the middle of a grand space adventure when they accidentally activate a pirate ship that blasts them off planet. Lost in space, the children soon realize that not only are they unaware of the way home, their planet is also apparently a mythical place filled with pirate treasure thought to be lost for generations. While on the run, the kids team up with the enigmatic Jod Na Nawood, a Force-using pirate captain who says he’ll help the children get back home…but what is his real agenda? Regardless, it’s up to the kids to work together to solve the mystery of their home planet and make it back in one piece as every pirate in the galaxy appears to chase after them in search of a final score.
Wim
Arc
Wim is first introduced as the wide-eyed adventurer of the group. He dreams of growing up to be a Jedi on a planet where he appears fated to become an analyst, but even though his antics end up stranding the crew in the first place, he learns to balance his wish for a better life with his love for his friends to help guide them home.
Significance
Although the show is definitely an ensemble show, Wim acts as the pseudo-protagonist to help get the adventure started, and his father, Wendle, is a consistent POV for the audience to see what’s going on back on At Attin.
Fern
Arc
The most outwardly confident of the group, Fern spends the season fighting against her need to rebel against her mother’s wishes for her to be perfectly proper while also accepting her role as a natural leader. Even though the boys may get on her nerves from time to time, she never questions her responsibility to protect them and get everyone home safe.
Significance
Fern acts as a Princess Leia type as she holds together the backbone of the crew. Despite her age, she’s tough, resourceful, and always ready to defend those in need - no matter if it’s her friends or anyone else they meet along the way.
Neel
Arc
Neel may be the character who most excitedly accepted his life on At Attin before the start of the adventure. A good student with a promising future, Neel was reluctant to leave his home but never loses faith in his best friend, Wim, or the others in the group. Although outwardly anxious and occasionally clumsy, Neel never fails to show up for his friends when they need him.
Significance
Neel is a key member of the crew who is sometimes used for comic relief but is also the most genuine member of the group. He wants to believe in the goodness of everyone that they meet, and even though he may not have a natural sense of adventure, that never stops him from joining this friends in whatever mission they need.
KB
Arc
Quiet and collected, KB is the logical base of the crew who never fails to see the bigger picture. Part cyborg, KB is intricately familiar with machines and uses that ability to help the gang get out of more than a few jams, but her logical strengths never get in the way of her sense of right and wrong as she always questions the morally complicated allies that come into the fold.
Significance
KB is Fern’s right hand, and they form an inseparable duo from the very first episode. She’s responsible for getting the crew out of trouble more often than not, but her emotional vulnerability occasionally peeks through to ensure that the crew never loses sight of what’s really important.
Jod Na Nawood
Arc
First introduced as the menacing Captain Silvo, Jod is a man of many faces and even more names. Although he attempts to keep his identity a secret and his feelings a mystery, his time around the crew threatens to soften him to the core of the humanity he thought lost years and years ago.
Significance
Jod acts as the singular adult amidst a rowdy bunch of children, although he plays the childish role more often than not. His presence in the crew acts as a catalyst for all of the children to begin their own emotional journeys, and his knowledge of the galaxy at large allows their adventure to grow far beyond what they ever thought possible.
Key Episodes
Kids from an ordinary planet discover a surprising secret.
S1E2: Way, Way Out Past the Barrier
A surprising first stop marks the beginning of an unexpected journey.
S1E3: Very Interesting, As An Astrogation Problem
S1E4: Can't Say I Remember No At Attin
Our heroes face a surprise in a familiar setting.
Design
First looks at the show’s teaser trailers continuously brought up the idea of “suburban Star Wars” due to the mixture of fantastical sci-fi technology with neighborhood streets, schools, and other areas not typically seen in the Star Wars galaxy. This has led to a color palette and design structure that is more in line with 80s family adventure movies like The Goonies, E.T. The Extra Terrestrial, and even more modern projects like Stranger Things.
However, the Star Wars elements in the show also fit right in with Skeleton Crew’s contemporaries like The Mandalorian. Given that the two projects occupy the same place on the timeline, similarities in clothing, architecture, and even character design can be seen between the two – with one of the pirate antagonists even making an appearance in both.
Technology and Effects
Special effects
Skeleton Crew uses a mixture of technical effects in order to create the aesthetic of the show. While they employ a healthy use of the Volume, previously seen in shows like The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and more, the creators also use additional techniques like practical puppetry and motorized miniatures to create creatures and ships that the children interact with. This multimedia approach allows the show to maintain a truly galactic feel when it comes to scope while also bringing the hands-on, practical feel of other effects that are reminiscent of 80s adventure films like The Goonies and Indiana Jones. (All images courtesy of starwars.com).
Behind the Scenes
Skeleton Crew was originally pitched as a film by creators Jon Watts and Christopher Ford back in 2017. However, their success with the Spider-Man franchise caused them to table the project for years, and when they returned, the success of Disney+ allowed them to expand the story into a series! Watts says this allowed them to dive deeper into the original story and tell the sort of adventure he had been dreaming about for years.
Related TV Shows & Films
There are currently no official tie-ins to Skeleton Crew but there have been rumors about a second season which could connect the show to the larger galaxy. While the series technically takes place in the same time period as The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka, the plot of the show stands on its own rather than employing the use of multiple crossovers.
Books & Comics Related to Skeleton Crew
There are currently no books or comics connected to Skeleton Crew but with the series still running, future titles may be announced soon. There are brief references to past material that may be seen above in the Easter Eggs, but we are currently waiting on new for additional tie-in material.
Top Critics
"This less-serious Star Wars is an escape to a happy place."
- Jack Seale, Guardian
“The children are immensely likeable, the gags work and my nine-year old daughter was clinging to my arm with every kid-friendly jump scare and plot twist."
- Martin Robinson, London Evening Standard
"A refreshing departure from the recent, repetitive fare, offering an ‘80s-family-flick-style adventure."
- Rendy Jones, RogerEbert.com
"This is a perfectly fun entry in the ever-expanding Star Wars canon: light and frothy by design, driven by a genuinely sweet cast of younglings at the fore."
- John Nugent, Empire Magazine
