Rebel Force Radio: Star Wars Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Earlier this week, it was announced that the long-running Star Wars Insider magazine will be releasing its final issue in early 2026. We look back at it's legacy and impact with founder Dan Madsen, who joins us In The Cantina to share behind-the-scenes stories about the early days of the magazine, his favorite memories of interviewing George Lucas, and his feelings about the magazine he started over 30 years ago finally coming to an end. Star Wars: Starfighter is gearing up for a 2027 release and we review interview comments from actor Matt Smith and director Shawn Levy who gets us caught up on the latest production updates. Plus, Daniel Craig looks back on his experience as a stormtrooper in The Force Awakens, new Lucas Museum news, and harmless lightsaber stabs to the midsection.

As Star Wars was being developed back in the mid-70s, the maverick special effects crew at ILM were pioneering new filmmaking technologies in often unconventional ways. In the early days, machinist Stuart Ziff found himself thrust into the action on day one. In the years that followed, Stuart used his skills in a variety of ways at ILM including working on Return of the Jedi creature costumes like Admiral Ackbar, Nein Nunb and Ree Yees, and on many projects from Dragonslayer to Ghostbusters to Jurassic Park. This week on RFR, Stuart joins us In The Cantina to share fascinating stories about working on the Star Wars Original Trilogy and beyond. Plus, our review of Star Wars Visions season 3 and Jimmy Mac had the opportunity to see a Star Wars Holiday Special legend perform live in Chicago. Listen to find out who it was!

LUCAS WARS is a new graphic novel that showcases George Lucas's rise from auteur filmmaker to Star Wars superstar as it goes behind-the-scenes of the original Star Wars film. Lucas Wars writer Laurent Hopman joins us In The Cantina to provide insight into his amazing illustrated story. But did George Lucas actually read it? You need to listen to find out!  In news headlines, we feature recent interview highlights from Mark Hamill and exclusive clips of The Acolyte's Manny Jacinto onstage at Chicago Fan Expo. Plus, we take a close look at the fallout from The Phantom Menace with highlights from the creators via ILM Light and Magic season 2, and that isn't enough, we got an Outrageous Unthinkable Story of the Week and Star Wars on Pop Culture for the cherry on top of an awesome show!

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Tensions are running high this week as Crosshair's return creates mistrust on both sides. Join us for the RFR After Show as we look at "The Return," the latest episode of THE BAD BATCH's final season. With callbacks to pivotal moments from season two's "The Outpost" and snow wyrms, we know this is a BAD BATCH breakdown you don't want to miss! We're taking your calls (Patreon members first!) and watching the chat for your thoughts, theories and speculation..

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Lando Calrissian actor Billy Dee Williams has committed his life story to a new autobiography called appropriately "Hello, What Have We Here". We feature highlights from the audiobook and welcome back "The Billy Dee Quote of the Week". We have production updates for the upcoming STAR WARS streaming series THE ACOLYTE and feature film THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU, along with more about Gina Carano's lawsuit against Lucasfilm. Plus, listener feedback about THE BAD BATCH, a write-in campaign for KENOBI season two inspired by Ewan McGregor himself, and find out how you can join us for a live "Star Wars Day" podcast on May The Fourth!

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Omega and Crosshair are on the run in "A Different Approach." Join us for the RFR After Show as we go under the hood of this latest action-packed episode of THE BAD BATCH, featuring your calls (Patreon members first!) and superchats with some amazing thoughts and theories from your fellow STAR WARS fans!

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THE RFR AFTER SHOW IS BACK and diving deep into the exciting three-part season premiere of THE BAD BATCH! Picking up where season two left off, we'll be talking about "Confined", "Paths Unknown" and "Shadows of Tantiss". Get ready for detailed discussion, in-depth analysis, and listener phone calls and theories with fellow STAR WARS fans.

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The next STAR WARS streaming series, THE ACOLYTE, is coming this summer. We discuss what we know about the story and listen to comments from showrunner Leslye Headland to find clues. Former MANDALORIAN actor Gina Carano made waves last week by revealing her lawsuit against Lucasfilm for wrongful termination. We listen to new comments from Gina explaining why she wants to move forward with litigation and the challenges she's encountered since losing her gig. We also consider the future for the character Cara Dune and wonder if there is a chance Gina will return to the role. Could the character get recast with a new actor? We speculate! We also continue our search for the "new" Wilhelm Scream with fresh evidence gathered by the RFR Investigative Report Team. Plus, THE PHANTOM MENACE celebrates its 25th anniversary this year with a return to the theaters, STAR WARS kitchen items, Sith Lightning, STAR WARS in Pop Culture and more!

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The Gina Carano controversy resurfaced this week as she finally filed a lawsuit against Lucasfilm claiming she was unfairly terminated from the role of Cara Dune on THE MANDALORIAN. We review the complaint and speculate about the eventual outcome. We offer our condolences to the family of Carl Weathers as the legendary actor behind Greef Carga sadly passed away. We pay tribute to Carl with audio highlights from his career as a member of the STAR WARS family along with reaction from Dave Filoni. We also raise a Red (Han) Solo Cup to the late country music superstar Toby Keith. Plus, more discussion about the upcoming "Rey Skywalker" film with audio from Daisy Ridley and FANBOYS celebrates its 15th anniversary.

We present a collection of the latest rumors about upcoming STAR WARS films and break them down to determine if they are potentially true or potentially false. From Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy to James Mangold to Dave Filoni, we look at the order in which their movies will be released. Plus, really interesting rumors about Shawn Levy's STAR WARS project and how it ties into the big picture. We have interview highlights from Daisy Ridley about her future in STAR WARS and AHSOKA's Natasha Liu Bordizzo talks about Sabine's connection to The Force. Plus, listener feedback, STAR WARS in Pop Culture, and we get grumpy discussing the potholes of STAR WARS memorabilia collecting.

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