Lucasfilm Producer Explains Biggest Difference Between ‘Star Wars Rebels’ and ‘The Clone Wars’ Six Years After Animated Shows’ Conclusion

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A producer from Lucasfilm has explained how the making of Star Wars Rebels differed from The Clone Wars. Though often compared, the two shows actually work together to tell one larger story. The Clone Wars focuses on darker events, which ultimately makes the hopeful tone of Rebels more impactful. While fans have always noticed how the series connect, a recent statement from an executive producer highlights the specific production choices that set them apart.

On the Pod of Rebellion podcast, Henry Gilroy, an executive producer for both Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, revealed the key differences in how the two shows were made.

Looking back on The Clone Wars, Gilroy noted a remarkably focused creative process, with George Lucas acting as the sole decision-maker.

Working on ‘Clone Wars’ meant focusing on pleasing one person: George Lucas. The goal was to collaborate with the talented artists and create something he approved of. Once he liked it, he’d then add his own creative touches.

Gilroy explained that the creative process changed dramatically when Rebels moved to Disney in 2014. He said approvals now had to go through multiple layers of committees, including representatives from Disney and the Broadcast Standards and Practices department.

Working on this project is vastly different from working with Disney on Rebels. There are multiple layers of review. You receive feedback not only from Lucasfilmā€™s story team regarding future films, but also from Disney executives, and from BS&P, who oversee whatā€™s permissible. On top of that, you have input from the entire Disney studio ā€“ excluding the Disney Channel.

Gilroy expressed his surprise at how well the series came together, given the number of people involved. He praised the team for sticking to their vision despite receiving a lot of feedback and requests for changes.

It’s a big shift going from getting feedback from just one person to now having to satisfy five different groups. Script notes come back color-coded ā€“ each color representing input from a different person. Itā€™s a lot to keep track of! Iā€™m always impressed with how well the series turned out, and thatā€™s largely because we stuck to our vision and built trust with the team, something we really developed during our work on Clone Wars.

Gilroy also pointed out a significant difference in funding between The Clone Wars and Rebels. He stated that Rebels had roughly half the budget of The Clone Wars.

Okay, so there are two main points. First, the budget for ‘Rebels’ was only half of what it was for ‘The Clone Wars.’ I think even when they cancelled ‘The Clone Wars,’ the studio felt they had enough episodes already, it had fulfilled its purpose for licensing, and it was becoming too costly to continue.

He recalled the intense public reaction when the show was cancelled in 2013, which ultimately led to its revival with a sixth season on Netflix in 2014.

When the show was cancelled, fans were really upset, and thatā€™s why Netflix decided to fund another season. The main factor in that decision was the cost, or budget.

Many fans might be surprised to learn that Clone Wars actually cost more to make than Rebels. This is especially true considering Rebels aired after Disney acquired Lucasfilm. You might expect Disney-produced shows to have bigger budgets, but Rebels was originally a series for Disney XD.

Dedicated viewers likely won’t be surprised, as Clone Wars was already famous for its movie-like animation, huge battles, and impressive production. Both series have faced some criticism regarding their animation, but Rebels has generally received more negative feedback about its artistic choices.

The Lasting Impact of Clone Wars and Rebels

The animated series Clone Wars and Rebels have become essential to the current direction of Star Wars stories, especially those made for live-action. Season 1 of Ahsoka feels like a continuation of Rebels, almost like a fifth season, bringing back many of the same characters and finishing storylines that were left open at the end of the original series.

The exciting connections between Star Wars stories keep growing this summer with the arrival of Zeb Orrelios in The Mandalorian & Grogu on May 22nd. This is a significant step up from his beginnings in a more modest Star Wars animated series for younger audiences.

The same can be said for The Clone Wars. The series Ahsoka didn’t just mention that time periodā€”it actively showed it, with visuals that included a live-action return of Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) and flashbacks to the Clone Wars themselves.

As a huge animation fan, I’m really excited to hear that we’ll be getting more stories! Projects like the upcoming sequel, Maul – Shadow Lord, are actually planning to keep things going all the way into 2026, which is fantastic news.

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2026-03-27 09:36