Star Wars Movies Ranked

Star Wars Day is here and there are as many reasons to celebrate this year as languages C-3PO speaks. The recent success of shows and the slew of upcoming Star Wars projects are exciting fans for the future. Shows in particular are emerging as a major part of the upcoming Star Wars universe. The Mandalorian has carried Disney+ subscription numbers to new heights. The Bad Batch premieres today on Disney+ as a spin-off show of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars whose final season was also a hit on the streaming service. After some less than stellar movies in recent years, the franchise has regained its footing.

In honor of Star Wars Day, it’s time for the decades-old tradition of arguing over the best and worst Star Wars movies. The franchise has expanded so much further than just the big screen with TV shows, video games, books, music, memes and more. However, Star Wars began as a movie franchise and between the trilogies and spin-offs, there’s plenty of room for debate.

Let me know on Twitter what you think of my rankings @avicarrgloth and May the Fourth be with you!

11. Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

This movie represents the sequel trilogy’s complete lack of direction. Undercutting a lot of main questions and plotlines from the previous movie, the story showed the lack of overall vision. Resurrecting the Emperor was a stretch and it seemed like J.J. Abrams was trying to make everyone happy with constant fan service. The movie title doesn’t really make sense either as Rey adopts the Skywalker name on her own without reason or context. There were cool moments as there are in all Star Wars movies, but this one earns its spot on the bottom of the rankings.

10. Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (2017)

This was the first sign the sequel trilogy was in serious trouble. The plot was a bit all over the place and the new ensemble of characters was hard to root for as their stories continued. You could have skipped this movie and hardly missed anything from the trilogy’s overall story. Interesting side characters lacked screen time due to their deaths or their lack of impact on the plot. Overall, the movie left the audience with more questions than answers.

9. Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002)

Attack of the Clones is the poster child of the prequel trilogy’s disappointment with robotic romantic dialogue and lack of action until the end of the movie. You don’t see the main villain (Count Dooku) until over an hour into the movie. The beginning of the Clone War and Anakin Skywalker’s first steps toward evil sound good on paper. However, the execution left much to be desired. The clones don’t even actually attack, making this one of the worst named movies in Star Wars.

8. Solo (2018)

This wasn’t exactly a story the fanbase was clamoring for. Solo spent the movie giving answers to questions nobody was asking. Nobody really needed to know the importance of his dice or the origin of his last name. The Jabba the Hutt storyline teased at the end sounded much more interesting and relevant to the character’s backstory. Although Han Solo is a great character, giving someone the thankless job of replicating Harrison Ford’s version of the smuggler is already setting the bar too high. Chewbacca and Donald Glover’s Lando Calrissian are easily the best parts of this movie.

7. Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)

The Darth Maul vs. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan lightsaber duel does most of the heavy lifting for this movie’s ranking. The acrobatic third act fight with “Duel of the Fates” ends this movie with one of the best lightsaber sequences in the franchise. In the earliest movie chronologically, the events of Phantom Menace cause ripple effects that alter the course of the overall Star Wars story. The plot is actually one of the better ones in Star Wars, but some of the acting and much of the dialogue keep this movie on the back half of the rankings. That’s before considering the amount of screentime dedicated to Jar Jar Binks. And don’t get me started on midi-chlorians.

6. The Force Awakens (2015)

The main critique of this movie is how close it resembles the plot of the original. It’s hard to blame Abrams for choosing the safer story as the franchise was reintroduced to fans. No matter which direction this movie went, it was likely to upset fans one way or another. A lot of fan service definitely boosts this movie’s rankings as it calls back to many iconic Star Wars moments and lines. While not a bad movie, The Force Awakens doesn’t crack the top five Star Wars movies due to its lack of an original story.

5. Rogue One (2016)

A good self-contained story, Rogue One is the best Star Wars movie since Disney purchased Star Wars in 2012. The plot leads seamlessly into the story of A New Hope and gives background and depth that adds to the lore of the original trilogy. Rogue One shows the sacrifices members of the Rebel Alliance make when choosing to fight the Empire. It was also terrifying to watch Darth Vader in his prime during the hallway scene at the end. A movie good enough as a stand-alone, Rogue One serves as a potential starting point to anyone trying out the Star Wars franchise for the first time.

4. Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983)

The culmination of Luke Skywalker’s rise to become a Jedi Knight was not as good as the journey to get there. It’s not a crime to be the worst film in an incredible trilogy. That being said, Jedi also delivers its fair share of famous lines with top-tier action and imagery. The groundwork laid for the ultimate confrontation between Luke and the Emperor pays off as Anakin finally comes back to the light side. A key part of the original trilogy, Jedi remains an essential Star Wars watch.

3. Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)

The best prequel is high on this list in part because it was made so much better by the context established in the Clone Wars TV show. The fall of the Jedi and the Republic and rise of Darth Vader and the Empire made this the franchise’s first PG-13 movie as its darkest story. That being said, there are some infamously terrible lines in this movie. Revenge of the Sith has probably generated more memes than any single piece of Star Wars content. But with great action and high stakes throughout, this movie earns its spot among the best in Star Wars.

2. Episode IV: A New Hope (1977)

The one that started it all. George Lucas went for space western and ended up creating a masterpiece ahead of its time. The original Star Wars became one of the most influential movies ever rendering everything on-screen iconic. The story of Luke, Leia, Han and Chewie fighting the mysteriously evil Darth Vader is the classic of all classics. Dialogue fans can recite by heart and acting roles that defined careers started with this late 70s blockbuster. Few movies have been mimicked as much as the original Star Wars.

1. Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

I mean…. is this really a debate? Empire is Star Wars at its peak. Building on the great characters from the original while introducing new ones like Yoda, Boba Fett and Lando make this the best Star Wars movie. Empire kickstarted much of the lore that makes up the Star Wars universe as we know it. The greatest plot twist of all time became one of the most famous movie moments ever and is ingrained into our cultural lexicon. This movie sets the standards for follow-ups after success as it’s widely regarded as the greatest sequel ever. Although the original is special, Empire Strikes Back earns the top spot in the rankings.