Rogue One Bits: The First 20 Minutes Screened, New Aliens Profiled, And All Kinds Of New Collectible Stuff
In this edition of Rogue One Bits:
StarWars.com’s Databank pagehas been updated with new information about some of the minor characters inRogue One. Let’s run down some of the big ones. Ah, remember the days when you had to learn this stuff from the back of toy packaging?
For more entires, including details on the TIE Striker, Krennic’s shuttle, and some of the new Stormtroopers, you’ll need to explore theDatabankfor yourself.
Entertainment Weeklyhas released a new gallery ofRogue Oneimages an each one is accompanied by a paragraph of new information. For example, this photo of Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor also comes with a few sentences that explain his actual role within the Rebel Alliance:
The gallery also provides context to shots we’ve seen in the trailer. For example, now we know more about the big space battle we’ve glimpsed and how it connects to the big ground assault Jyn leads on the paradise planet of Scarif:
The wheel-shaped space station that an X-wing squadron is attacking is the Shield Gate. The world below is Scarif, a tropical planet that’a one of the Empire’s key military-industrial complexes. The filmmakers describe it as a galactic Los Alamos, the top-secret desert town where scientists and engineers built the first nuclear bomb during World War II.
We’ve included a few more photos in the gallery below and you’re able to follow the link above to check out the rest.
In a separate interview with producer John Swartz,Entertainment Weeklyfurther explored Scarif and its shield generator:
You can see the blue sheen surrounding the entire planet. The shield gate is the security. As Imperial ships and cargo comes through, it punches a hole in the shield so they can pass. The gate officer gives clearances as they give out their call signs.
Swartz also explained that Scarif was where much of the Death Star was designed and researched, even if it was built elsewhere:
It’s part of their military industrial complex. It’s not necessarily where the Death Star was constructed, but a lot of military research goes on there. That’s why Krennic spends time there. It’s the site of research, structural engineering, munitions and manufacturing, all rolled into one facility.
You can find more details at the link above.
And in one final blast of Entertainment Weekly news, here are the publication’s twoRogue Onecovers.
We’ve reached the point where theRogue OneTV spots are arriving faster than we can cover them, so go ahead and enjoy this new one, which is built around the relationship (or lack thereof) between Jyn Erso and Galen Erso, before you get distracted by another one.
Although the recently releasedStar WarsnovelCatalystexplains Galen Erso’s backstory in great detail, actor Mads Mikkelsen is apparently still under orders to not share much about his scientist character, telling theLos Angeles Daily News:
Let’s put it this way: I’m a scientist and I’m working on something spectacular. There’s a program I skipped. I went away with my family. I got cold feet. I could see it was going in the wrong direction.
Mikkelsen also emphasized that his character can’t be easily labeled as either a hero or a villain:
If you met him or just saw him in a single scene, you would not think that he was really a villain. And he’s not a villain, but he is a man who’s not been doing the right thing all the time.
Rogue Onetickets went on sale earlier this week and the internet reacted accordingly by, well, breaking itself. According toDeadline, Fandango sold hundreds of thousands of tickets within minutes, which doesn’t account for those who purchased their tickets through other services (or the faithful who chose to line up at an actual box office). While it surely won’t match the record-breaking debut ofStar Wars: The Force Awakens(how could it?), it certainly sounds likeRogue Oneis going to do just fine.
Ready to go rogue? Tickets for ROGUE ONE go on sale this Monday with an exclusive@MondoNewsglass! Details:https://t.co/5N0MsmtLZ5pic.twitter.com/DbZR9x1KxQ
— Alamo Drafthouse ATX (@drafthouse)June 20, 2025
If you happen to buy yourRogue Onetickets at the Alamo Drafthouse theater chain, you’re able to spend a few extra bucks to also pick up their exclusive new pint glass, which features art by the great Martin Ansin.
Speaking of skilled artists lending their talents toRogue Onetickets, Tom Whalen has designed three unique collectible tickets for Regal Cinema’s IMAX 3D screenings of the film. Naturally, you’ll have to return once a week fro three weeks to collect them all.
If you already think you’ll be seeingRogue Onemultiple times in theaters, Regal Cinemas has a deal for you. For $100, you can buy their “ultimate ticket,” which will let you see the film once a day for its entire run. Here are the details:
Guests with the Regal Ultimate Ticket receive one admission to Rogue One: A Star Wars Story each day for the entire run of the movie in Regal Theaters. Accepted for all film formats, including 3D, RPX and IMAX.
This one-of-a-kind collectible ticket is each card features the movie title laser cut through anodised steel, plus gold etching and the distinctive black gloss Rebellion insignia. Each card is personalised, with the cardholders name inscribed permanently on the back.
Hurry! Production is limited only to 1000 cards!
Much like howThe Force Awakensoffered fans collectible the chance to buy and use 3D glasses based on characters from the film for 3D screenings of the film, RealD has introduced a trio of limited editionRogue Oneglasses. You can choose from Death Trooper, Imperial Stormtrooper, or Rebel Pilot.
I’ll admit that I haven’t fallen in love with many of the recent posters forRogue One, but I really do dig this new international banner.
The latest issue of Empire magazine has dedicated its cover story toRogue Oneand, naturally, the interior is full of images from the film. One of them is this behind-the-scenes shot, which finds director Gareth Edwards personally holding the camera during a scene with Felicity Jones' Jyn Erso. It’s unusual for a director to to actually operate the camera on a major film like this,but as Jones told the magazine:
The whole methodology with Rogue One was to keep it very naturalistic. Gareth often holds the camera himself because he wants to be there with you. With Gareth we felt like we were all in it together.
Meanwhile, the new issue of US Weekly has quietly debuted our first look at Jimmy Smits as Bail Organa, making his return to the saga after his small role in the prequel trilogy. Unfortunately, anyone who has seen the originalStar Warsknows that Princess Leia’s adoptive father is, well, incredibly doomed.
Did you know that Alderaan wasn’t the first planet destroyed by the Death Star? Well, thatwasthe case before theStar Warscanon was wiped clean andStar WarsExplained has the details.
WhileRogue Onehas yet to screen for audiences in its entirety, the opening 20 minutes were shown as part of a press event in Mexico, which means that a lot of what goes down in the opening scenes of the movie is now online. If you’d like to know more, read on. If this is the part where you exit Rogue One Bits because the movie opens in two weeks, the door is to your left. Thanks for stopping by.
The first report comes from a Redditor namedJelly_Lionwho shared their thoughts with theStar Warssubreddit:
Watched 30 minutes here on Mexico. The visuals are amazing, the action is well directed and the [chemistry] between the characters looks very nice. Can’t wait to see more. They kind that introduced us to all the characters, but I have no idea if the scenes were edited or not. K2SO is the comic relief, but a badass one (like a mixture between Groot and C3PO). There’s a flashback, I think it’s the first time that it happened on Star Wars. There’s a LOT of locations in the movie. Like 6 or 7 in the scenes showed.
Meanwhile,Making Star Warshas full details about the opening seconds of the film, confirming that the iconic “a long time ago” title will be there, although it is now 100% confirmed that there will not be an opening crawl and that the title itself will be presented on screen:
Up front is the “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away” is still there. The movie will then cut to space and the film gets rolling. The opening crawl will not be there as we’ve been hearing for the last year and recently, basically confirmed in the Entertainment Weekly piece.
The movie does have a ROGUE ONE title card. Basically we see the bald headed Saw Gerrera open a hatch and save young Jyn after the horrible events that change her life forever and then we see the Rogue One logo emblazoned on the screen.
Jedi Newshas posted the most detailed description of the footage, so if you want to know the opening scene beat-by-beat, this is for you:
For more details, including thoughts on the film’s action and how Jyn Erso differs from Rey, you can follow the link above.
