Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Lucasfilm presents "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," the first in a series of standalone Star Wars movies, offering a brand-new and thrilling adventure. During a time of widespread conflict, an unlikely group of heroes unites on a perilous mission: to steal the blueprints of the Death Star, the Empire's most devastating weapon. This pivotal moment in the Star Wars saga showcases ordinary individuals rising to the occasion, performing extraordinary feats, and ultimately becoming part of something far larger than themselves. See it in theaters December 2016.

Roughly six years following the formation of the Galactic Empire, Imperial Director Orson Krennic, accompanied by a squad of death troopers, arrives on the planet Lah'mu. There, he forcibly recruits scientist Galen Erso to finalize his work on the Death Star, a space station envisioned by the Empire to obliterate entire planets. Galen's spouse, Lyra Erso, is fatally wounded when she shoots and injures Krennic in an attempt to prevent the abduction of her husband. Their offspring, Jyn Erso, retreats into hiding until Saw Gerrera, the leader of the Partisans, finds and adopts her.

Thirteen years later, an adult Jyn Erso, using the alias Liana Halik, finds herself incarcerated within a Detention center located on Wobani, sharing a cell with Oolin Musters.

At the Ring of Kafrene trading outpost situated in section nine, Captain Cassian Andor, a Rebel Intelligence officer, engages in a meeting with his contact, Tivik. Tivik discloses that an Imperial cargo pilot defected from the Galactic Empire the previous day, spreading information regarding the development of a weapon utilizing Kyber crystals sourced from Jedha. Following Andor's persistence, Tivik reveals that the weapon is a "planet killer" and that Rook claims Galen Erso, an old friend of Saw Gerrera, dispatched him. Andor manages to escape before Imperial Stormtroopers can apprehend him.

Having defected, Imperial pilot Bodhi Rook seeks out Saw, carrying an important message from Galen concerning the Empire's construction of an ultimate weapon. He finds Gerrera's hideout on Jedha but Gerrera's Partisan soldiers, including Benthic, are distrustful of Rook's intentions and capture him. They bring him before Gerrera and though Bodhi pleads his case to the Partisan leader, Gerrera does not trust him either, fearing that he is being lured into a trap. To discover if Rook is being truthful or not, Gerrera subjects him to the torturous creature Bor Gullet, an experience which leads to a temporary loss of Bodhi's sanity.

Extraction Team Bravo frees Jyn from Imperial imprisonment and escorts her to a gathering of Rebel leaders, including Mon Mothma, Jan Dodonna, Bail Organa, Davits Draven, and Andor. They persuade her to assist them in securing a meeting with Saw, whom Jyn has not encountered since he abandoned her several years prior. While the mission is presented to Jyn as a rescue operation, Draven secretly instructs Cassian to assassinate Galen to impede the weapon's completion. Jyn, accompanied by Cassian and his reprogrammed Imperial droid K-2SO, departs for the moon Jedha aboard a Rebel U-wing.

Governor Wilhuff Tarkin oversees the construction of the Death Star from the bridge of the Executrix. He observes as the superlaser is installed. Krennic boards the Star Destroyer and approaches Tarkin on the bridge. Tarkin voices his concerns regarding the defected cargo pilot, who is disseminating rumors about the Death Star's existence on Jedha. He informs Krennic that his deadline for completing the battle station is approaching and that the Emperor will not tolerate any further delays. Suggesting that both issues be resolved simultaneously with a demonstration of the weapon, Tarkin makes it clear to Krennic that failure will not be excused.

Cassian, Jyn, and K-2SO arrive on Jedha, where Cassian anticipates meeting a Partisan contact. The droid remains on the ship while Jyn and Cassian venture out to locate his contact. However, the pair becomes entangled in an armed rebellion against the Empire led by Gerrera's partisans. Jyn and Cassian find refuge only after K-2SO defies orders to stay on the U-Wing and comes to their aid. Following the defeat of the Imperial troopers, the convoy returns to Tythoni Square, the site of the uprising. Imperial reinforcements arrive, mistaking K-2SO for an Imperial droid transporting prisoners. The droid attempts to maintain the charade, but the disguise is exposed. They are rescued by the intervention of blind warrior Chirrut Îmwe and mercenary Baze Malbus, guardians of the Kyber Temple on Jedha, which the Empire is plundering for its treasures. After the Imperial reinforcements are defeated, the group believes they are safe until a group of Partisans, including Benthic, arrives and takes over the square, kidnapping Andor, Erso, and the two guardians with K2 having gone back to the ship. Benthic feels that Andor was hostile towards the Partisans during the uprising because he shot one of their own who was preparing to throw a grenade at a tank next to which Jyn was hiding. Jyn reveals to the Partisans that she is the daughter of Galen Erso and the partisans take them to their headquarters in the Catacombs of Cadera and imprison them.

While Cassian, Chirrut, and Baze are locked in cells, Jyn is brought before Saw. The calm captive Chirrut "prays" to the Force with his mantra "I am one with the Force and the Force is with me" while Baze mocks his partner's mystical ways. Cassian becomes impatient with Chirrut and begins to try and pick the cell lock himself. Gerrera is surprised to see Jyn, having parted ways with her years before. He is still wary that the pilot's message and Jyn's return is simply a trap but when Jyn explains her intentions of finding Galen he becomes more comfortable. He questions what Jyn wants to obtain from this to which Jyn answers that she wants no part of it and that her role is finished. Refusing to believe that Jyn no longer cares about the Rebel cause, Gerrera offers to show her something that he feels will change her mind. Meanwhile, on the Death Star, Tarkin and Krennic prepare to test the weapon on Jedha City, having evacuated all Imperial forces from the moon via Protocol 13. Krennic goes to order the complete destruction of the moon, but Tarkin overrules him and orders that the test-firing be conducted at minimum power. With imminent danger approaching, unbeknownst to those on the moon, Cassian, Chirrut, and Baze linger in their cells. They notice that in the cell next to them is an Imperial pilot, Bodhi Rook, and Cassian begins to question him, curious if he is the cargo pilot that brought the message. Bor Gullet's effects on Bodhi are clear and he does not seem to understand what Cassian is talking about until he mentions Galen's name and Rook's memory is jogged. As the Death Star's superweapon commences primary ignition above the moon, Gerrera begins to show Jyn the message that Bodhi brought. The message is a hologram, in which Jyn's father expresses his love for her and discloses his coerced help on the Death Star project. Galen also reveals that he covertly compromised the Death Star's design by including a subtle vulnerability in its reactor that can be used to destroy it. He tells her that the structural plans are at an Imperial high-security data bank on the planet Scarif. However, before the hologram can finish, the Death Star fires on the moon and chaos ensues.

As the imminent destruction of Jedha City begins, the Partisans in the Catacombs begin to flee. Cassian quickly hot-wires the cell door and he, Chirrut, and Baze escape captivity. Cassian hurries to the convoy's possessions that were seized when the Partisans kidnapped them and frantically uses his comlink to call K-2SO who describes the destruction ensuing outside. Cassian informs him to locate their position so they can escape. Before they can flee, Cassian goes to find Jyn, telling Chirrut and Baze to flee the pilot, which Baze does by blasting the cell door with his MWC-35c "Staccato Lightning" repeating cannon. Cassian locates Jyn and informs her that Bodhi has told him where her father is. Gerrera urges her to go with Cassian, but when Jyn suggests he comes with them he refuses, electing to remain there and die with the city. The mass exodus of the catacombs begins, and those who exit look on in horror as they see Jedha's surface beginning to peel back destroy everything in its path. As the Catacombs begin to collapse along with everything else, K-2SO pilots the U-wing through the destruction to pick up the convoy. Cassian, Jyn, Chirrut, Baze, and Bodhi hurriedly board the U-wing and the ship begins its escape through the destruction. Gerrera watches from the collapsing Catacombs as the U-wing takes off and the blast wave overtakes the area. Shortly before his impending death, Gerrera tears off his breath mask and accepts his fate. Jyn watches from the U-wing as the wave consumes the Catacombs and kills Gerrera. The convoy looks on in horror at the destruction outside as K-2SO and Cassian pilot the U-wing, fleeing the destruction that threatens to overtake them. Barely escaping the blast wave, Cassian hurriedly punches in the calculations and the U-wing blasts into hyperspace, narrowly escaping Jedha.

As the Death Star's demonstration is carried out, Krennic, Tarkin, and many other Imperials look on. Krennic expresses the "beauty" of the destruction. With the demonstration complete, Tarkin congratulates Krennic but promptly uses Rook's defection from Galen Erso's Imperial facility on Eadu and the security leak on Jedha under Krennic's command as a pretext to take control over the project. Enraged, Krennic openly challenges Tarkin's decision and decides to deal with the defector and the potential Rebel sympathizer on Eadu personally. In the aftermath of the incident on Jedha, Cassian sends a coded message back to the Alliance base to inform them that Jedha has been destroyed and that he has learned that Galen is on Eadu. Receiving the message, General Draven is dumbfounded by the destruction of Jedha City but advises Andor to keep to the plan of killing Galen. Already in hyperspace, Cassian receives Draven's instructions and informs K-2SO to set their course for Eadu. The entire convoy is in shock concerning Jedha's destruction, and a troubled Chirrut begs Baze to describe the extent of the destruction. Baze reluctantly consents. Knowing now that her father is on Eadu, Jyn explains to Bodhi — who mistakenly believes that his message was too late — that Galen has laid a trap in the Death Star. However, with the message having been destroyed in the chaos on Jedha, she has no way of backing up her claims and the group is wary to believe her. With Cassian refusing to send word of Jyn's claim to the Alliance, she resolves to get her father on Eadu and bring him back to the Alliance so that he can tell them himself.

With Tarkin having seized control of the Death Star project, Krennic departs the Death Star in his ST 149 shuttle en route for Eadu, where he plans to expose the Rebel sympathizer in Galen Erso's team. Meanwhile, the Rebel convoy, also seeking out Galen Erso on Eadu, approaches the planet in their U-wing. The planet's stormy conditions hinder their approach, and as Bodhi guides them towards the Imperial installation, they crash whilst attempting to avoid Imperial detection.

Jyn tracks her father to an Imperial research facility on the planet Eadu, where Cassian chooses not to kill Galen. When Krennic arrives and threatens to have Galen's main team killed for causing the security leak, Galen confesses he is responsible. Krennic executes the team nevertheless, and Jyn makes her presence known just as a Rebel bombing raid begins, leaving Galen fatally wounded. Jyn's father dies in her arms before she and her group escape in a stolen Imperial cargo shuttle.

With Galen Erso silenced, Krennic travels to Mustafar to speak with the mysterious Dark Lord, Darth Vader at his castle. Upon Krennic's arrival, the Dark Lord's servant, Vaneé alerts Vader, who is meditating in a rejuvenation chamber that the Director has arrived. Vader exits his meditation to confront Krennic on a platform overlooking the volcanic landscape of the planet. The Dark Lord expresses his concern that the Death Star has become more of a problem than the solution it was intended to be, citing Krennic's inability to keep the project a secret as the main catalyst for the change in approach. Krennic defends himself and his creation, claiming that he has delivered a remarkable weapon to the Emperor. Because of his self proclaimed success, he petitions that Vader grant him an opportunity to personally meet with the Emperor and advise him of the Death Star's unprecedented potential. Vader, however, is far more concerned about the rumors that had reached the higher levels of the Empire of the destruction of Jedha City and the attack on the Eadu facility by the Rebellion and what these revelations mean as far as the secrecy surrounding the Death Star project. Krennic attempted to shift blame onto Tarkin for ordering the demonstration on Jedha in the first place, but Vader is not impressed by this futile effort and criticizes Krennic's groveling, reminding the Director that the secrecy behind the Death Star project was instituted in order to prevent open defiance from the Senate. Vader suggests that the Jedha incident be disguised as a mining disaster, but seems to imply that Galen Erso's betrayal might have been a bitter blow to the Empire's secrecy. Vader instructs Krennic to ensure that no other leaks occur so that the Emperor would be satisfied that the project had not been compromised. As Vader swiftly departs, Krennic makes a last plea for his continued control over the project, hoping to remain in command of the battle station rather than Tarkin. However, Vader's patience has run thin, and when Krennic requests that Vader speak to the Emperor on his behalf, the Dark Lord chokes the Director using the Force. As Krennic falls to his knees, Vader warns him to temper his aspirations, lest they cause his downfall. He releases Krennic and the conversation is ended.

Having made their way back to the Rebel base located on Yavin 4, both Jyn and Bodhi attend an Alliance Council meeting. During this meeting, Jyn suggests that the rebels should journey to Scarif to secure the Death Star blueprints, enabling them to pinpoint the reactor module's vulnerability. The Rebel leadership, which includes figures such as Mon Mothma, Jan Dodonna, Bail Organa, Tynnra Pamlo, Nower Jebel, Vasp Vaspar, Davits Draven, Admiral Raddus, and Antoc Merrick, finds itself deadlocked. A significant number of Senators propose dispersing their fleet, believing they have no other option but to surrender. Mothma, Organa, and Raddus make efforts to champion Jyn's proposal. However, with the deaths of Galen Erso and Saw Gerrera, and the destruction of their hologram, the Rebel leadership lacks a means to confirm the truth of Jyn's statements. The opposition, fueled by fear and represented by Pamlo, Vaspar, and Jebel, outweighs the support, even in the face of Jyn's passionate appeal for hope. Lacking the council's full endorsement, Mothma reluctantly adopts a cautious stance, deeming the risks of committing such a large portion of their forces as too high.

Driven by frustration with the council's inaction, Jyn, Cassian, K-2SO, and a contingent of Rebel volunteers decide to take matters into their own hands. The group boards a shuttle with the intention of independently raiding the databank. Before their departure, they are intercepted by Rebel command, who demand their identification. Rook spontaneously creates the call sign "Rogue One" before they proceed to Scarif without official Alliance authorization.

Upon Rogue One's arrival at Scarif, they initiate the transmission of a clearance code, hoping it remains valid. Fortunately, the code proves to be accepted. The team successfully navigates the Shield Gate and descends toward the planet's surface. In a brief moment before the mission commences, Jyn addresses the squad, aiming to inspire them. She emphasizes that despite facing overwhelming odds, the element of surprise offers the potential for success. Cassian then briefs the team, instructing them to engage the enemy troops as a diversion, allowing Jyn, Cassian, and K-2SO to infiltrate the Citadel and locate the plans. While Jyn, Cassian, and K-2SO search the data bank for the design plans, the remaining team members detonate explosives and open fire in the nearby landing zone, creating a distraction for the resident stormtroopers.

After landing on Scarif, Rogue One ambushes the inspection team, seizing their uniforms. Jyn and Cassian, disguised as members of the inspection team, gain entry to the Citadel, accompanied by K-2SO.

Inside the Citadel, K-2SO hacks into another Imperial droid of the same model, seeking intelligence to pinpoint and access the vault. In response to the diversionary explosives set off by the squad, Krennic orders the deployment of the garrison. Tarkin is informed that the Scarif installation has been breached by rebels and expresses concern that they may be targeting the Death Star plans. Tarkin then informs Lord Vader about the situation before ordering the Death Star to jump into hyperspace to investigate.

Meanwhile, back at the Rebel headquarters on Yavin 4, the Rebellion intercepts Imperial transmissions, learning about the battle. However, before the council can be officially notified, Admiral Raddus has already dispatched his fleet to support Rogue One's efforts.

As Rogue One engages the stormtroopers, Bodhi contacts Scarif Imperial headquarters, providing false information to sow confusion and enhance the squad's tactical advantage. The garrison deploys AT-ACT walkers to confront the squad.

With the arrival of Raddus's fleet, Red and Gold Squadrons are tasked with protecting the fleet, while Blue Squadron is ordered to descend to the surface, reinforcing and providing air support to Rogue One as they battle on the beaches. Several X-wings, including Blue Leader Antoc Merrick, and a single U-wing gunship manage to pass through the opening before Gate Control closes the gate, resulting in the deaths of several pilots. Cassian contacts Bodhi, instructing him to attempt to open the gate for the fleet to transmit the plans. Bodhi then directs the ground troops to locate a master switch, enabling him to interface with the communications tower and communicate with the fleet.

Rebel troops disembark from the gunship, bolstering Rogue One's forces. The fleet commences its assault on the Shield Gate, but their efforts prove futile. Rebel X-wings clash with numerous TIE fighters stationed on the Shield Gate, resulting in significant losses on both sides. Jyn discovers the plans on the Citadel mainframe, identified by the codename Stardust. Jyn immediately recognizes the name as a covert personal message from her father, intended to aid her in locating the Death Star plans. K-2SO secures the vault door just moments before stormtroopers arrive to investigate. In a desperate attempt to divert their attention, K-2SO attempts to lure them away. However, the stormtroopers grow suspicious, forcing him to engage them in combat. Before being destroyed by enemy fire, K-2SO locks the vault door, preventing the stormtroopers from reopening it and providing his comrades with the time needed to retrieve the plans. Krennic is informed about the unauthorized access to the vault and proceeds to investigate. Jyn and Cassian ascend the data vault and physically extract the data plans. Immediately following the retrieval of the plans, the duo is ambushed by Krennic. He fires his blaster at Cassian, causing him to fall.

After activating the master switch to enable communication with the Rebel fleet from Rook's shuttle, Chirrut is killed. A squadron of Y-wings under the command of Jon Vander launches multiple ion torpedoes at a Star Destroyer, rendering it inoperable.

Rook successfully establishes contact with Raddus's flagship, Profundity, informing them of the necessity to open the deflector shield, enabling the transmission of the Death Star plans. Shortly thereafter, a thermal imploder is launched into his ship, resulting in his death and the destruction of the shuttle. Having received Rook's transmission, Raddus swiftly devises a plan to breach the shield, utilizing the available resources.

Raddus orders a Sphyrna-class Hammerhead corvette, Lightmaker, to physically collide with the side of a disabled Star Destroyer. This impact propels the disabled ship into a second Star Destroyer nearby, initiating a chain reaction that effectively destroys all three vessels. Baze, inspired by Îmwe's sacrifice, repeatedly utters his comrade's signature phrase: "I am one with the Force, and the Force is with me." However, he is subsequently killed by a grenade. One of the Star Destroyers crashes into the shield gate protecting Scarif, disabling the planetary shield and restoring full communications. Krennic pursues Jyn, cornering her atop the Citadel tower. Before he can kill her, Cassian, who had survived the blaster wound, shoots and severely injures Krennic. Jyn successfully transmits the schematics to the Rebel command ship, before assisting the injured Cassian into a nearby elevator.

Tarkin arrives aboard the Death Star and initiates a single reactor ignition of the superlaser, aiming to destroy the compromised base and prevent the plans from falling into enemy hands. Although the blast overshoots the base, the outer edges of the beam destroy the transmitter and Krennic. Nonetheless, the explosion's power is sufficient to guarantee the death of everyone in the vicinity. Jyn and Cassian, aware of their inability to escape, await the approaching blast on a beach near the base. In their final moments, Cassian assures Jyn that her father would have been proud. Seconds later, the blast incinerates them, along with the base.

After honoring his fallen comrades, Raddus orders his fleet to jump to hyperspace. However, before the entire fleet can escape, most of the ships are intercepted by Vader's Star Destroyer, Devastator, which begins to destroy or disable the blockaded Alliance ships. Vader boards Admiral Raddus's disabled command ship and singlehandedly massacres numerous Rebel troops in pursuit of the Death Star plans, only to witness the CR90 Corvette Tantive IV launch from the hanger bay, narrowly evading Vader's grasp.

Aboard the Tantive IV, Princess Leia Organa receives the stolen plans and declares that the Rebellion has just received "hope." The Tantive IV then jumps into hyperspace.

John Knoll, a visual effects supervisor who also serves as the chief creative officer at ILM, began formulating the concept for Rogue One during the mid-2000s. This occurred after he learned that George Lucas was in the process of developing a Star Wars live-action TV series. Nevertheless, Knoll shelved the idea upon realizing its incompatibility with the show's intended concept. The series was ultimately placed on indefinite hiatus due to budgetary limitations, prompting Lucas to retire from filmmaking and appoint Kathleen Kennedy as the new head of Lucasfilm. According to Kennedy, Lucas expressed a "real interest in exploring all the stories that existed inside the universe." (Lucas had contemplated creating films outside the main saga for a considerable time, dating back to the development of the original Star Wars film.) Lucasfilm decided to refer to these non-episodic adventures as the Star Wars Anthology Series. Encouraged by his colleagues, Knoll presented his idea to various individuals within Lucasfilm, including Lucasfilm Story Group member Pablo Hidalgo, who responded enthusiastically. This led to a meeting with Kennedy and Kiri Hart, a member of the Story Group and Lucasfilm's vice president of development. Kennedy, who stated she had been president "for about 10 minutes" when she discussed it with Knoll, believed it was a fantastic idea and that she "couldn't say no." Hart, like Kennedy, was "immediately excited" about the film. Consequently, it was selected as the first stand-alone film to be produced, owing to the involvement of plot elements familiar to a broad audience.

Gary Whitta, the writer behind The Book of Eli and After Earth, was contracted to pen the film's screenplay. In the initial script, the main characters survived, based on the filmmakers' assumption that Disney would seek to reuse them. Whitta's script also concluded with a wedding. On March 12, 2015, it was announced that Chris Weitz would assume screenwriting responsibilities from Whitta. (It has been reported that Scott Z. Burns and Christopher McQuarrie also contributed drafts to the script.) Furthermore, the film's title was revealed as Rogue One—a name conceived by Whitta during the writing process—and Felicity Jones, an Academy Award nominee for her role in The Theory of Everything, was cast in the film. In Weitz's draft, the Empire's construction of the Death Star was not explicitly stated: "It was just the sense that the rebellion — that something bad was going down and we need to find out about it. There was this developing sense of dread throughout the film."

John Knoll advocated for a low-budget approach to the film's production, even suggesting the reuse of sets from The Force Awakens. However, "As we got into more detailed story development, you know, the canvas sort of kept expanding and more epic things kept popping up and going into the movie. And you know, the discussion with Disney, it became clear that they were really open to the idea of going bigger with these movies." Gareth Edwards, the director of Monsters and, at the time, Godzilla, was selected to direct the film early in the creative process. A previsualization reel based on the story was created using footage from various other films, including WarGames, Aliens, and Zero Dark Thirty. Edwards also utilized ILM's latest advancements in virtual reality to aid in pre-visualizing the film.

Principal photography for the film commenced in London in August 2015. This announcement coincided with the D23 Expo that same month. In addition, a StarWars.com blog post unveiled the complete cast for the film. At least two cast members underwent specialized training for their roles: Felicity Jones in a form of martial arts and Diego Luna in military tactics. Members of the British Armed Forces were also employed as extras. The production team aimed to create a film that felt authentic, as if it were set in a real location, and one that explored the gray areas of Star Wars, contrasting with the clear-cut morality of the original Star Wars trilogy. The film's visual style drew inspiration from the work of artist Frederic Remington, as well as footage of real-world wars. Warwick Davis, who played a minor role in the film, described Edwards' directing style: "He would shoot in a very unique way where stuff was kind of almost improvised, but you never knew quite when he was shooting and when he wasn't, so you just kept doing stuff just in case he was rolling at that time."

Certain Star Wars conventions were deliberately avoided in post-production, such as an opening crawl (although one was present in Whitta's original script) and "wipe" scene transitions. ILM utilized unused footage from A New Hope to incorporate Rebel pilots from that film into Rogue One; Edwards conceived the idea after discovering a box of negatives while touring the Lucasfilm Archives.

Reshoots were part of the plan from the beginning. According to Edwards, "it was always part of the plan to do reshoots. We always knew we were coming back somewhere to do stuff. We just didn't know what it would be until we started sculpting the film in the edit." However, in June 2016, rumors began circulating that Disney had mandated significant reshoots to "lighten" the film's tone, with Tony Gilroy and Simon Crane brought in to assist.

In reality, after Edwards delivered his final cut, Gilroy was hired to write, shoot, and edit new material, earning over $5 million for his efforts. Edwards attributed the extensive reshoots to the spontaneous, cinéma vérité nature of the production. Entertainment Weekly reported that the reshoots focused more on character development than on altering the plotline. As Kathleen Kennedy explained, "There's nothing about the story that's changing, with a few things that we're picking up in additional photography. I think that's the most important thing, to reassure fans that it's the movie we intended to make." The script underwent structural revisions, including shifting all character deaths towards the end and adding the Darth Vader ending sequence.

The film's musical score was initially composed by Alexandre Desplat, but Michael Giacchino took over during post-production.

A brief teaser trailer was presented to attendees of Celebration Anaheim, depicting the Death Star in the distance on a jungle planet. However, Lucasfilm could not promote the film outside of Celebration Anaheim during the summer of 2015 due to the similarity between the titles of Rogue One and the upcoming film Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation. The title of Rogue Nation had been registered with the Motion Picture Association of America before Rogue One, leading to the embargo on Rogue One promotion. On April 7, 2016, a teaser trailer was released during ABC's Good Morning America. A ten-second preview of the teaser had been released online the day before. On July 15, a Rogue One panel took place at Celebration Europe featuring Gareth Edwards and Kathleen Kennedy. During the panel, a featurette and a new trailer were released. The featurette aired that night during the ABC broadcast of Secrets of the Force Awakens: A Cinematic Journey. A trailer also aired during the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Starting on September 20, TNT aired the first six Star Wars films. This was part of an agreement in which Turner networks acquired exclusive rights to air eleven Star Wars films, including Rogue One in 2019. On October 12, it was announced that a new trailer would be released the following day, October 13. ABC aired an additional preview of the film on November 24, as part of their "Magical Holiday Celebration." On December 2, Twitter hosted a livestream Q&A with Edwards and crew members. On the same day, members of the press were invited to Skywalker Ranch to view 28 minutes of footage from the film. Cast and crew members made various media appearances, most notably on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Good Morning America, Conan, Sirius XM, and MTV News. The film held its Hollywood premiere on December 10.

Some cast and crew participated in UNICEF's Force for Change and Kid Power programs, creating Target-exclusive T-shirts, with five dollars from each sale going to the cause. Edwards also used the opportunity of making the film to promote the ASSERT charity. As with The Force Awakens, a terminally ill cancer patient—Neil Hanvey—was granted an early viewing of the film. Hanvey passed away two days after seeing the film.

The Rogue One merchandise line officially launched on September 30, 2016. A prequel comic miniseries of the film, consisting of three issues and a one-shot, was planned for release in October by Marvel Comics. However, the miniseries was canceled on May 17. Two other movie-related products were also canceled before release: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story: Rebel Alliance Field Manual, canceled when publisher Media Lab Books lost the license, and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story: The Official Visual Story Guide. On November 15, Del Rey published a prequel novel to the film, titled Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel. Dorling Kindersley released an art book and ultimate visual guide for the film on December 16, coinciding with the film's release. A short story titled "The Voice of the Empire" tying into the film was featured in Star Wars Insider 170. A Rogue One expansion was released for the video game Star Wars Battlefront. Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes hosted several exclusive events introducing characters from Rogue One.

In August 2016, Lucasfilm released a series of online images advertising Hasbro's Rogue One toy line, which debuted on September 30. The toys were also featured in Go Rogue, an officially sponsored, fan-created online video series that continued throughout September. The Black Series figure of Jyn Erso was released on October 15, 2016. By September 4, 2016, the figure had already reached the #1 Best Seller spot in Amazon's Action & Toy Figures category, based on hourly-updated figures. Verizon sponsored Rogue One: Recon, a 3D experience created by ILM Experience Lab. Nissan offered a Rogue One–themed Limited Edition of its 2017 Nissan Rogue. In October 2016, Rogue One–inspired commercials aired for Duracell, Nissan, and Gilette products.

Rogue One became available on Digital HD on March 24, 2017, and on Blu-ray and DVD on April 4, 2017. The retail version includes bonuses exclusive to the store outlet where it was purchased. Target's 5-disc set includes collectible packaging with interchangeable character covers and exclusive bonus content (Blu-ray 3D + two Blu-ray + DVD + DVD exclusive content – 2 additional bonus features + Digital HD + collectible packaging), Best Buy has a 4-disc set with exclusive SteelBook packaging (Blu-ray 3D + two Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD + SteelBook packaging), and Wal-Mart sells a 3-disc set with exclusive K-2SO packaging and two Galactic Connexions trading discs (two Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD + K-2SO packaging + two Galactic Connexions trading discs). In addition to the film itself, the various home-media releases include various special content, including John Knoll's inspiration for the concept of the film, coverage of the cast regarding their respective characters, coverage of easter eggs hidden throughout the film, and behind-the-scenes looks at how Tarkin and Leia were given digital touchups.

Tickets went on sale at midnight on November 28, and reports soon surfaced that Fandango had crashed due to high demand. The film achieved the second-highest day-one pre-sales, surpassed only by The Force Awakens.

On January 22, 2017, the film exceeded one billion dollars in global box office revenue. On May 17 of that year, the film was honored with the title of "Movie of the Year" at the MTV Movie & TV Awards. Despite the film's success, there were never any plans for a sequel.

In April 2020, co-writers Chris Weitz and Gary Whitta recorded a YouTube commentary and Q&A for the film, hosted by IGN.

Rogue One unfolds in the timeline between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, specifically during the era known as the Age of the Empire. The narrative centers on a band of rebel fighters who come together with the purpose of stealing the blueprints for the Death Star, which is the Galactic Empire's mobile battle station in deep space with the capability to obliterate entire planets. This theft was initially mentioned in the introductory text of A New Hope, where it was depicted as the Rebel Alliance's "first victory against the evil Galactic Empire." The introductory text goes on to say that "Rebel spies managed to steal secret plans to ... the DEATH STAR". The beginning scenes of A New Hope depict the aftermath of that conflict, showing Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan fleeing the Empire with the blueprints to deliver them to the Rebel Alliance. Ultimately, the Death Star is destroyed in A New Hope after the princess and her allies—Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO—get the plans to the Rebellion, leading to the discovery of a vulnerability in the station.

The title Rogue One signifies a callsign, but it's also a wordplay, as the movie marks the first canonical live-action film outside of the main saga, thus making it the "rogue" one. Differing from the prior films, Rogue One does not focus on the Jedi. Instead, the movie portrays a group of individuals who lack the ability to wield the Force and must find a way to instill hope in a galaxy under the Empire's control. Furthermore, in contrast to the original trilogy's clear distinction between good and evil, Edwards commented at Celebration Anaheim that Rogue One "is gray" and suggested that the film could be characterized as "Real…This is a real place that we're really in…"