Star Wars: Rogue One - 10 Crazy Rumours You Should Definitely Believe

4. A Tangible Link To Episode VII (And VIII)

The inspiration for the tight release schedule really hints at what Disney's approach to Star Wars' future is going to be; they're wanting a new Marvel. This has been expected since they first bought Lucasfilm, and while it'll seem like overkill for those weirdos who don't actually like Star Wars, it's actually befitting the franchise. Star Wars has always had a vast mythology, it was just spread over books and comics rather than the cinema screen. The parallels between Disney's two massive franchises won't end with the saturated release dates though. An interlinked, overarching story is what's made the Marvel Cinematic Universe go from just fun blockbusters to cultural monoliths, and something that will obviously be applied, albeit to a less overt degree, to Star Wars. Now, given how every geek-friendly property hides plenty for the internet to dissect in the months following release, you already expected Rogue One to have a few cautious nods to The Force Awakens (and, as it'll only be arriving five months afterwards, Episode VIII). But this will be more than the Millennium Falcon in Revenge Of The Sith; even though Rogue One is set thirty-five years, give or take, before the Sequel Trilogy, there'll be a proper, linked plot point between the films. How can you be sure? Well, how else do you turn the spin-off from optional viewing into essential watching?