Unreleased Star Wars Animated Series: The Untold Story of Detours

by

As a longtime Star Wars fan, I still can’t get over one of the strangest decisions Lucasfilm ever made. Back in 2013, they scrapped a fully completed animated series – a whopping 39 episodes! – and just… didn’t release it. Honestly, the history of Star Wars on TV has been a bit of a rollercoaster. We’ve seen everything from the truly awful, like the Ewoks cartoon, to the genuinely brilliant, like Andor. It proves the franchise can deliver amazing serialized stories, but it also shows they’re willing to take risks, and sometimes those risks just don’t see the light of day.

Like the Star Wars films, several Star Wars television shows have been announced and then canceled. George Lucas’ Star Wars Underworld is a notable example, and more recently, shows like Lando and Rangers of the New Republic were also abandoned before they could air. Interestingly, back in 2013, Star Wars actually stopped production on a show it had already begun filming: Star Wars Detours.

39 Episodes Of Star Wars Detours Were Made But Never Released

During the 2012 Star Wars Celebration VI event, Lucasfilm showed a preview of Star Wars Detours, a planned animated comedy series. The show would have been set between the films Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, and featured humorous adventures with familiar characters from the original trilogy – including Darth Vader, Princess Leia, and Han Solo – alongside characters from the prequel films like Dexter and Jar-Jar Binks. It was intended as a comedic take on the Star Wars universe.

Seth Green, a voice actor on the show, revealed in 2015 that Star Wars Detours had completed 39 episodes, with scripts for 62 more already written. However, Lucasfilm stopped production in 2013, and the series remains on hold. Although no new episodes are currently being made, Lucasfilm or Disney haven’t officially canceled the show.

Even though Star Wars Detours was cancelled, you can still find clips, a trailer, and even a leaked episode online, and they give a strong sense of how funny the show could have been. The show featured hilarious scenarios, like Han Solo and Chewbacca arguing and Darth Vader making commercials for the Empire. It would also have been the first time Star Wars attempted a purely comedic style, making it stand out from everything else in the franchise.

Why Star Wars Detours Was Put On Hold In 2013

Whenever people talk about Star Wars Detours, the big question is always why it was cancelled. The show was genuinely funny, and the existing clips demonstrate a witty, sarcastic style similar to Robot Chicken. It playfully teased the original Star Wars films – for example, a clip shows stormtroopers literally falling through the painted backgrounds used for the Death Star’s seemingly endless shafts.

Although Detours had promise, it was paused in 2013 when Lucasfilm started working on the sequel trilogy (according to Star Wars news sources). Lucasfilm felt that a purely comedic show making fun of the franchise’s history wasn’t a good idea while they were also trying to attract new fans and generate excitement for the sequels. They worried the show’s humor would clash with the more serious promotion of the sequel films.

Detours was created before we officially started working on the new Star Wars movies. After deciding to make those films, we realized releasing a comedic cartoon series before the first movie might not be the best idea. Therefore, we’ve decided to delay the release of Detours to a later time.

Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm in October 2012 probably contributed to the cancellation of the animated series Detours. Star Wars Detours was already in production and shown at Star Wars Celebration in May 2012, so the change in company ownership likely led to the project being indefinitely postponed.

In 2021, Seth Green shared more details about the status of Detours (according to EW). He explained that Disney and Lucasfilm weren’t interested in adding the show to Disney+ because they didn’t want to spend the time and money to update it after it had been on hold for a decade. The show would likely need some jokes rewritten or removed, and the animation updated, but Disney doesn’t think it’s a worthwhile investment.

The Voice Cast For Star Wars Detours Is Still Impressive Over A Decade Later

It’s especially disappointing that Star Wars Detours never came out when you consider how talented the voice actors were. The show brought back several familiar faces from Star Wars, including Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian, Anthony Daniels as C-3PO, and Ahmed Best as Jar-Jar Binks. But that was only the beginning of the show’s impressive cast.

Several well-known voice actors contributed to Detours, including Seth Green (known for Robot Chicken), Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy), Dee Bradley Baker (Star Wars: The Bad Batch), Grey DeLisle and Catherine Taber (Star Wars: The Clone Wars). The show also featured guest appearances from celebrities like Andy Richter (as Zuckuss), Weird Al Yankovic (as 4-LOM), Zachary Levi, and Joel McHale.

A show with this many talented voice actors and famous celebrities should have been a huge success. It’s baffling that, after assembling such a strong cast, the series was never released. Even if Lucasfilm wanted a more serious tone and Disney pushed for modern updates, those reasons don’t explain why a show with so much star power was cancelled.

Why Disney+ Should Consider Releasing Star Wars Detours

Even though Disney paused production of Star Wars Detours 13 years ago, it’s worth considering releasing the show on Disney+. The episodes fans have seen still feel fresh and funny, and clips have often become popular online. It’s clear there’s still interest in Detours, especially among newer Star Wars fans.

A show like Detours would be a great fit for a streaming service such as Disney+. Star Wars has already expanded its reach thanks to streaming, with shows like Star Wars Visions – which exists outside the main storyline – being possible because of it. Streaming allows Star Wars to explore different genres and styles, making it an ideal platform for a comedic parody show like Detours.

Adding Detours to Disney+ would be a great move. It’s a show created by and for Star Wars fans, playfully poking fun at both the original and prequel trilogies – something many fans already enjoy doing, as evidenced by the countless memes about the films. Now is the perfect time for Star Wars to bring Detours back.

Read More

2026-03-09 02:59