"Project Luminous" was the working title of "Star Wars: The High Republic" when it was first announced in April of 2019. The multi-platform media project will launch in the year 2021, a year which might not see any live action Star Wars releases. Multi-platform projects such as this one typically grant publishers and creators freedom to develop grand storylines without being weighed down by the canon and continuity of films. Past examples of these projects in Star Wars include "The New Jedi Order" book series and the "Shadows of the Empire" multi-platform project.
"Shadows of the Empire", released in 1996, was supposed to generate the marketing hype of a movie without an actual movie being release. The target audience were nineties kids, who had recently discovered the franchise. The centerpiece of the project was a novel written by Steve Perry with tie-ins including a video game, comics, toys, and even a soundtrack.
Star Wars is not the only franchise that has attempted giant cross-platform projects. Currently the Doctor Who franchise is also in the middle of a similar venture. "Time Lord Victorious" presents one storyline across various books, comics, audio adventures, magazines, merchandise, an animated series, and even live experiences such as escape rooms and immersive theatre. Audio releases feature the voices of fan favorites including David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor and Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor. There is even a vinyl release attached to the project.
Not quite as expansive as the previous two examples, Star Wars "The High Republic" will be initially be limited to books and comics. "The Light of the Jedi" by Charles Soule will release in January. It will be followed by "A Test of Courage" (a junior novel by Justine Ireland) and "Into the Dark" (a YA novel by Claudia Gray). Comic releases will include Marvel's "The High Republic" by Cavan Scott and IDW's "The High Republic Adventures" by Daniel José Older.
"The High Republic" takes place roughly 200 years before "The Phantom Menace". The working title "Project Luminous" presumably takes its name from a quote from "The Empire Strikes Back" by Jedi Master Yoda. The High Republic features a slightly younger version of Master Yoda as well as several new Jedi Masters, Knights, and Padawans. The concept art highlights a colorful range of lightsaber colors and styles. Though we don't have names of all characters yet, we see Jedi represented by a variety of galactic races including Trandoshan, Bith, Pau'an, Wookiee, Zygerrian, Twi'lek, Mirialan, Zabrak, and Tholothian.
"The High Republic: Light of the Jedi" hits bookshelves on January 5th.
