Suvudu Universe

The rumor mill’s been going at it again. After the news about Disney’s Marvel and Netflix joining forces to create four series and a mini-series event based on Marvel comic book characters surfaced earlier in November, Star Wars fans have been wondering whether something similar would transpire for our galaxy far, far away.

First thing’s first, the news about Star Wars and Netflix has been around since last December when Disney and Netflix struck up a distribution deal. Take this NBC News article from December 5, 2012, for example, which stated, “The [Disney and Netflix] deal gives Netflix streaming rights to movies from Disney’s live-action and animation studios, including those from Pixar, Marvel, and the recently acquired Lucasfilm.” Disney has obviously been looking for new sources of distribution. Netflix is ideal because it’s also known for its creative space and original content (ex. Orange is the New Black, Hemlock Grove, etc.). After the deal was made, almost a year later, we see plans for original Marvel series that will focus on characters like Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and other well-known characters. The Marvel news from early November basically kicked up old dirt and old news became new news.

This new original TV deal follows last year’s landmark movie distribution deal (the deal I mentioned above) through which, beginning with 2016 theatrically released feature films, Netflix will be the exclusive U.S. subscription television service for first-run, live-action and animated movies from the Walt Disney Studios, including titles from Disney, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Studios, Disneynature and Lucasfilm.(Source)

Basically, beginning 2016, movies made under the Walt Disney Studios umbrella that we see on the big screen as well as original content will appear on Netflix. On a side note, exclusive online content could spell out bad news for international fans, though. I have a close friend in Canada, who also has Netflix, but her content is different from the content I have with my U.S. subscription. The quote above specifically states “U.S. subscription.” Star Wars is a planet-wide community. I have friends in Spain, Australia and France, who had to watch Star Wars: The Clone Wars through streams because the material wasn’t readily distributed in their area. This has always been an issue, though. It’s an issue now with international fans not having access to the Star Wars Rebels Disney XD website.

So what does this all mean for the current rumor about a Cad Bane series on Netflix? Ryan Leston from Yahoo! Movies UK reported that there might be a potential series for the ruthless bounty hunter, who first appeared in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Well, if this were true, it could be a live-action series, like the ones being planned for Marvel. Don’t get too excited just yet. With any rumor, especially any rumor related to a Clone Wars character, you have to take it with a grain of salt.

Additionally, according to Leston’s source, the Star Wars license as well as Star Wars Rebels will move to Netflix, which makes sense because of the aforementioned deal. Star Wars Rebels, though, is a Disney XD series. This was announced by Lucasfilm and that’s where the show will remain. Netflix would probably receive the series months after the first season has ended, similar to how a movie ends up on Netflix months after it has been released in theaters and DVD/Blu-ray.

I won’t lie. A series about Cad Bane would be very cool, but I think it’s highly unlikely. Personally, if a Star Wars series were to happen on Netflix, it wouldn’t just focus on one character. It would probably serve some larger purpose, like focusing on the events of Star Wars: Episode VII or Star Wars Rebels. Take the Marvel deal, for example. They are focusing on four characters, but this would ultimately lead into a mini-series about The Defenders, which would probably play into the larger universe Marvel is creating both on television and in theaters. My dreams about a continuation of Star Wars: The Clone Wars have been sorely crushed, so I really don’t expect much from Disney when it comes to that timeline and era.

For more information about this rumor, I’ll point you over to MakingStarWars.net, where editor-in-chief Jason Ward has shared his own thoughts on the matter.