Earlier this week, Lucasfilm droppedthe third and final trailerforRogue One: A Star Wars Story. For fans, now is the time to revel in excitement and speculation—because if the Prequels taught us anything, it might not get any better than this.
WithRogue Oneset to hit theaters on December 16th, I decided to go back and re-rank all the Star Wars teasers and trailers from worst to best.
It’s important to note that this is not a ranking of the Star Warsfilmsbut the previews themselves, both in terms of their initial effectiveness and how well they hold up today. (For brevity’s sake, I chose not to include TV spots.)
So, without any further ado…punch it, Chewie.
22) ‘Attack of the Clones’ Teaser: “Forbidden Love”
It probably says something aboutAttack of the Clonesthat it needed not one but three teasers to explain what the hell was going on. This one, titled “Forbidden Love,” was by far the worst, focusing on the abysmal romance between Anakin and Padme. Actually, the only way it could have been worse is if they included that shot of Jar Jar smiling directly at the camera. (Yes, that actually happens inEpisode II, at around the 9:45 marker. I’ll wait while you check…)
21) ‘Attack of the Clones’ Teaser: “Mystery”
This one falls in the same camp as “Forbidden Love.” In this teaser, we get a jumble of non-Battle of Geonosis shots withJohn Williams' “Duel of the Fates” playing over it as if to say, “Better or worse?”
20) ‘Star Wars’ Trilogy: Special Edition Trailer
The conceit of the Special Edition trailer is actually pretty cool, opening on a tiny, analog TV that plays clips from the originalStar Wars, followed by a montage of full-picture, digitally enhanced footage. Which is great, except for the fact that 1996 CGI looks like bantha poodoo. Nowadays, this trailer is just a painful reminder of all the unnecessary changes the Original Trilogy went through, like the PS2-level graphics in the Jabba the Hutt deleted scene. (Don’t worry, they were upgraded to PS3 graphics for the DVDs
19) ‘Star Wars’ Re-Release Trailer
In case you forgot the title of the movie, this 1981 re-release trailer should refresh your memory.
18) ‘Return of the Jedi’ Trailer
As great as the Original Trilogy is, most of the films' theatrical trailers are pretty underwhelming by today’s standards. Looking back,Return of the Jedi’s trailer wasn’t all that exciting, but the nostalgia is strong in this one. It also shows Luke’s lightsaber as both green and blue, before it was changed to just green for the final cut of the movie.
17) ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ Trailer
Of all the trailers, this was probablyGeorge Lucas’s favorite; his infamous motto “Faster! More intense!” comes to mind while watching it, which isn’t helped by the old-timey, vacuum-cleaner salesman voiceover (provided byHarrison Fordhimself) and characters losing their balance constantly. (Seriously, count the number of pratfalls in this.) My favorite part is how it cuts to every single two shot of Han and Leia when the vacuum guy mentions an “epic of romance.” (Well, that and Luke and Leia getting their twincest on.) To its credit, theEmpiretrailer does show some restraint by not spoiling any of the Yoda stuff.
16) ‘Star Wars’ Trailer
Lucasfilm’s first full trailer forStar Warsis pretty straightforward: plot synopsis, voiceover, cast rundown and a big explosion at the end. However, it’s most noteworthy for giving fans their first taste of John Williams' iconic score, which puts it slightly ahead of theEmpireandJeditrailers.
15) ‘Revenge of the Jedi’ Teaser
TheRevenge of the Jediteaser isn’t so much memorable for its content—which is similar to the final trailer’s—but for its famed title change. The story goes that screenwriterLawrence KasdanthoughtReturn of the Jediwas “a weak title,” so Lucas changed it toRevenge of the Jediduring production. However, he later decided that a Jedi wouldn’t seek revenge, and he switched it back to his original title for the final release.
14) ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ Teaser
This one is notable for only featuring concept art byRalph McQuarrie, including paintings of Luke’s final confrontation with Vader and introducing “Landau” Calrissian! While not the most heart-pounding teaser, it’s definitely unique in that there’s no actual footage from the film.
13) ‘Attack of the Clones’ Trailer
Eventually, Lucasfilm came out with a properEpisode IItrailer, giving fans their first glimpse at the clone troopers in action. While some fans were skeptical afterThe Phantom Menace—rightfully so—the prospect of 200-plus Jedi fighting alongside an army of proto-stormtroopers was hard to resist. However, the trailer may have also given too much away, as it revealed pretty much every plot point of the movie.
