Makingstarwars.net posted quite a few exclusive rumors for Star Wars: The Force Awakens and you know what? Quite a few of them turned out to be true. They're back at it again, for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the spin-off film that's managed to keep the lion's share of its plot under wraps despite releasing later this year. Directed by Gareth Edwards from a script penned by Gary Whitta and Chris Weitz, Rogue One is a prequel anthology film set between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope.
From last April's Star Wars Celebration we learned that the film will focus on a group of Rebels who band together to steal plans of the Death Star. Star Wars fans already know that the group is successful because the stolen plans are a key plot element in A New Hope and allows Luke Skywalker and co. to pinpoint the base's lone weakness and destroy it. At the Star Wars Celebration Edwards described the film as a realistic war film, with no Force-users present to save the day. "It's the reality of war. Good guys are bad. Bad guys are good. It's complicated, layered; a very rich scenario in which to set a movie. "
Here's where Makingstarwars.net's rumor jives with what we've previously had confirmed.
"Mads Mikkelsen (Galen appears to be his name in the film) is kind of the key to the film in a way. He is a scientist that took over the Geonosian Death Star project. He solved several of the flaws the Empire could not and is sort of a revered person in the Empire for his contributions. However, Mikkelsen’s character is a Robert Oppenheimer-type character. Oppenheimer helped design the atomic bomb only to say, “Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” The guilt “Galen” feels for his contributions to the Empire become too much and he defects, attempting to make things right. In order to do this, he enlists the help of his only daughter…."
And Mikkelsen's daughter will be played by the female lead, Felicity Jones. With the outcome of the mission a known commodity, the tension in the film will have to come from the personal stakes of those involved and the magnitude of the undertaking. It's probably safe to say that not everyone among Felicity Jones' Rebel team will survive the ordeal.
The site also reports that the first trailer for the film is set to debut with Marvel's Captain America: Civil War.
Rogue One concept art from the Star Wars Celebration day.