The Clone Wars Legacy constitutes a canon transmedia project centered on episodes of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series that were never fully realized or broadcast. While some story arcs were presented as story reels (with one later being completed for Season Seven), others were adapted into print form, such as the comic mini-series Star Wars: Darth Maul—Son of Dathomir and the novel Dark Disciple.
The first story of what would become The Clone Wars Legacy was revealed on January 7, 2014 as the comic mini-series Star Wars: Darth Maul—Son of Dathomir, though the Legacy branding was not yet in place. Dark Disciple, the second story, was announced on July 25, 2014, at San Diego Comic-Con. The official unveiling of The Clone Wars Legacy brand occurred on September 25, 2014, via StarWars.com, coinciding with the online release of the four-part "Crystal Crisis on Utapau" arc in animated story reel format.
On April 9, 2015, StarWars.com announced that another four-episode story arc, "Bad Batch," which was incomplete, would be showcased as story reels at Celebration Anaheim. Brent Friedman, the writer for the arc, had previously shared substantial details about the episodes on his Twitter account.
The comic miniseries Darth Maul—Son of Dathomir is an adaptation of a planned four-part story arc intended for the show's seventh season. Jeremy Barlow adapted the scripts for the episodes, and Dark Horse Comics published it in 2014, during their final year holding the Star Wars license.
The comic's narrative originated from the following episodes penned by Aïda Mashaka Croal and Matt Michnovetz:
The "Bad Batch" story arc was initially conceived as the opening for a potential seventh season. The episodes were initially presented in story reel format at Celebration Anaheim and were soon after made available on StarWars.com. It was revealed at Celebration Chicago on April 14, 2019, that a completed version of the Bad Batch arc would be incorporated into the Star Wars: The Clone Wars revival season. These episodes began airing weekly on Disney+ starting on February 21 2020.
Dark Disciple, a novel authored by Christie Golden, focuses on the characters of Asajj Ventress and Quinlan Vos. It is based on a story arc comprising eight episodes that were scripted but never fully produced.
Pablo Hidalgo of the Lucasfilm Story Group indicated in March 2016 that, following the release of the sixth season, thirteen story arcs remained unproduced. Prior to the show's cancellation, first drafts of scripts had been written for seasons 7 and 8. Brent Friedman confirmed via Twitter that each arc consisted of four episodes. Hidalgo also verified that production season 5 contained 25 episodes, while production seasons 6 and 7 each had 24 episodes. According to Hidalgo, the unfinished episodes that make up The Clone Wars Legacy represented the last significant expansion of the Star Wars universe that directly involved George Lucas.
This arc, consisting of four episodes, was written by Matt Michnovetz and assigned production codes 5.22–5.25. The storyline involved Boba Fett and Cad Bane collaborating on a "rescue mission" on Tatooine, where Tusken Raiders had abducted a child. The arc was intended to highlight the relationship between Boba and Cad, given Cad's prior association with Jango. The narrative was heavily inspired by the film The Searchers, which George Lucas admires. Concept art indicated that Aurra Sing, Seripas, C-21 Highsinger, Embo, Latts Razzi, and Bossk were also intended to appear. Cad Bane was to receive new clothes, be accompanied by Todo 360, and possess a new ship called the Justifier. Dewbacks and a Tusken Shaman would have been featured, along with new elements such as the building Minions Wreck and Wares, the droid Ruckle, and a Toong named Lancek Trevoras. The planet Serolonis was also created specifically for this arc.
A clip shown during the Animated Origins and Unexpected Fates panel at Celebration Orlando in 2017 depicted Cad Bane and other bounty hunters ending an insurrection by Fett, which also involved Seripas, a new character named Stim, and the unseen Sugi. The sequence culminated in a standoff duel, during which Fett's helmet was dented. Daniel Logan, the voice actor for Boba Fett, reported at the London Comic Con 2018 that he had recorded lines as Fett for seven episodes, including the Fett/Bane duel.
An arc of four episodes, with production codes 6.05–6.08, was planned to follow Ahsoka Tano after her departure from the Jedi Order. This arc would have explored her early experiences in the underworld, where she encountered a scoundrel named Nyx Okami and formed a close bond with him. Ahsoka's character was to be challenged by her involvement with the underworld and the Pyke Syndicate, forcing her to resist her Jedi teachings for her own safety. On April 14, 2019, at Celebration Chicago, it was announced that Ahsoka's Walkabout would be adapted as part of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars revival season, although it was also revealed that two new characters, Trace and Rafa Martez, would replace Nyx in the story arc. These episodes were released weekly on Disney+ starting on March 20 2020.
A four-episode arc penned by Matt Michnovetz, with production codes 6.17–6.20, would have featured Yoda and the Bad Batch on Kashyyyk. Dave Filoni discussed the arc's plot at the "Untold Clone Wars" panel during Celebration Anaheim. He revealed that the characters would ride giant ape lizards considered sacred by the Wookiees. One scene would depict Tarfful seeking permission from the tree spirits to engage in battle against the enemy, a group of Trandoshans led by Babwa Venomor, and the Separatist Alliance. To drive the enemy out of certain cities, they would need to burn some of the trees, a prospect that the clones accepted but the Wookiees found distressing. A key theme of the arc would be the clones and Wookiees finding common ground to fight the Separatists. Some of Yoda's troopers would have his head silhouette on their helmets, and Echo would be integrated into the Bad Batch squad. A story-reel clip shown at the panel featured the Bad Batch and other Wookiees—including Major Clausito—fighting netcasters, creatures whose design was inspired by the kinrath from the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic game. Only portions of the four episodes were made into animatics before the series was cancelled. Dave Filoni revealed at Celebration Europe II that Yoda's presence in the arc was intended to provide context for his line "Good relations with the Wookiees I have" from Revenge of the Sith. Matt Michnovetz disclosed that Chewbacca would have played a significant role and that the arc would have included references to The Star Wars Holiday Special.
In the Star Wars: The Bad Batch episode "Tribe," when Clone Force 99 returns to Kashyyyk, Wrecker mentions that they had been on Kashyyyk before. StarWars.com confirmed this as a reference to the unproduced Kashyyyk arc from The Clone Wars, with Michnovetz having written both episodes and incorporating similar elements such as the Netcasters, Mylayas, and Trandoshans. Furthermore, the arc's antagonist, Babwa Venomor, also made an appearance in the episode.
Brent Friedman authored the script for a four-episode arc centered on Rex and R2. This story depicted a conflict between the ground forces of the Clone Army and the pilots, along with their astromechs, including R2-D2. The arc featured Rex piloting a starfighter with R2 as his copilot. They would crash and become stranded on one of the moons of Ryloth, which served as the primary setting for most of the episodes. Rex and R2 would reprogram a B2-series super battle droid and develop an attachment to it, with Rex sustaining an injury at some point. Friedman noted that the arc began with a lighthearted tone but evolved into "some very unexpected and dark places."
This story would have featured the Yuuzhan Vong in a limited capacity. A scout ship would be attempting to evaluate the strength of the Republic and the Jedi. Pablo Hidalgo described it as a creepy story, akin to an episode of The X-Files involving an alien abduction. To better align with George Lucas's depiction of the Force, the Vong would not possess any Force immunity in this narrative. Pablo mentioned that the story would not delve into the origins of the Vong, but suggested they likely originated from another galaxy.
This story would have explored what lies beneath the Jedi Temple, drawing a parallel to how churches were often constructed atop previous religious sites. The subterranean area would contain temples of various Force-using groups, possibly even a Sith shrine. During this exploration, Ahsoka and Anakin would have used autogyro-style vehicles. Giant skeleton Kaiju would inhabit the depths. Ahsoka would uncover a threat in the underworld of Coruscant and return to the Jedi Order to warn them. She, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Anakin Skywalker would embark on a mission to rescue Master Yoda from the Sith shrine. The arc would also have depicted Darth Sidious attempting to breach the Holocron Vault within the Jedi Temple, with Ahsoka hindering his efforts.
This story would have featured Padmé Amidala working against Chancellor Palpatine's extended term in office. In episode 7.19, Padmé and Anakin Skywalker would have returned to Mon Cala to meet with King Lee-Char again. There, they would have discovered that the leader of the Quarren, Nossor Ri, had been murdered, and Tikkes had been appointed as the provisional leader in his stead. Padmé hoped to secure support from the Quarren to remove Palpatine from power. The Quarren Senator Tundra Dowmeia would have explained to Padmé that their government was gridlocked and unable to function. They would have met with Tikkes, who would have expressed his frustrations with Palpatine. Lee-Char was originally intended to reappear in an arc where he no longer trusts the Republic due to what happened to Ahsoka.
The comic book miniseries Star Wars: Allegiance confirmed that Ri survived the Clone Wars within canon. Instead of dying during that conflict, Ri met his end by sacrificing himself in the name of Mon Cala during the First Order-Resistance War in 34 ABY.
This arc, with production codes 7.21–7.24, was intended to be the series' final arc. It would have depicted Ahsoka Tano joining forces with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker in response to a message from Bo-Katan Kryze, who alerted the Jedi to Darth Maul's return with what remained of the Shadow Collective. However, during the battle, General Grievous would have launched a surprise attack and kidnaps Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, leading Anakin and Obi-Wan to rescue Palpatine, while Ahsoka and Captain Rex would remain in command of the clones, who would paint their armor with markings resembling Tano's face. Part of this arc was adapted into the prologue of the novel Ahsoka by E. K. Johnston, and it was first mentioned in the Star Wars Rebels episode "The Lost Commanders." These episodes were released weekly on Disney+, starting on April 17, 2020, with the exception of "Victory and Death," which premiered on May 4.
In 2010, during the DVD commentary track for the second season, Dave Filoni and Danny Keller speculated about the possibility of bringing back the Zillo Beast in the seventh season. Dave Filoni also had "plans" to feature Barriss Offee following her deception in the fifth season finale "The Wrong Jedi," an episode whose original ending had Offee killing herself, but this was changed due to Filoni's plans.
Aurra Sing was intended to appear in several unfinished episodes for the sixth season, including one where she would have been killed and another where Jaime King's husband, Kyle Newman, was to have a role. Newman's role would have been a member of the Toong species.
The Bounty Hunter Arc was intended to conclude with Cad Bane's death at the hands of Boba Fett in a duel. However, the release of Star Wars: The Bad Batch episode "Reunion" confirmed Cad Bane's survival into the Imperial Era. Nevertheless, dialogue from the subsequent Disney+ live-action series The Book of Boba Fett strongly suggests that Bane's mentorship of Boba Fett and their duel still occurred.
The story of "Return to the Jedi Temple" is not considered part of Star Wars canon because the 2014 novel Tarkin, written by James Luceno, establishes that Darth Vader was unaware of the Sith shrine beneath the Jedi Temple. In the unproduced story, Anakin Skywalker accompanied Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka Tano to rescue Yoda from the shrine.
The "Return to Mon Cala" story is also not considered canonical, as Nossor Ri would have been murdered during the arc. The fourth issue of the Star Wars: Allegiance 2019 comic book series establishes that Ri survived until at least the Battle of Crait.
- The Clone Wars Legacy on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- " Launch Pad " — Star Wars Insider 154
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars "Bad Batch" 4-Episode Arc Coming to Star Wars Celebration on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- SWCA: The Untold Clone Wars Panel Liveblog on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Bad Batch Star Wars: The Clone Wars Panel | Star Wars Celebration Anaheim on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link)
- The Untold Clone Wars Panel - Star Wars Celebration Anaheim on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link)
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars "Bad Batch" Recon on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- " Blaster " — Star Wars Insider 158
- " Behind the Batch " — Star Wars Insider 224 – 225