It’s no secret that Saw Gerrera will be making the jump to the big screen in Rogue One. Here’s everything you need to know about him ahead of the premiere.
That’s right: Forrest Whittaker won’t be the first actor to take on the role of freedom fighter Saw Gerrera.
In fact, Saw Gerrera (voiced by Andrew Kishino) originally made his debut during Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The Clone Wars was an animated television series that took place in the time between Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.
But The Clone Wars isn’t the only piece of Star Wars lore that has featured or mentioned Saw Gerrera. Ahead of the Rogue One premiere on December 16, we’ve collected each of his appearances into one article to serve as a quick refresher course on the character.
Warning: There may be some mild spoilers for events leading Rogue One in the Catalyst section.
‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’
Our first introduction to Saw Gerrera came during the four-episode Onderon arc in The Clone Wars‘ fifth season.
Gerrera and his sister, Steela, were loyalists and supporters of Onderon’s king, Ramsis Dendup. Dendup was notable for refusing to take a side in the conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems.
Though Gerrera supported this neutrality, Dendup was removed from the throne by Separatists and replaced by a puppet king called Sanjay Rash. The Gerrera siblings, alongside Lux Bonteri, formed a resistance group aimed at driving the Separatists from Onderon and reinstating Dendup as king.
Gerrera and Bonteri contacted the Jedi High Council for assistance in freeing Onderon from the Separatists — which led to Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano being sent to Onderon to train them.
Saw Gerrera fronted several campaigns against the Confederacy, including an ill-advised attempt to save Dendup from execution, which culminated in Gerrera’s eventual capture and torture. Gerrera and Dendup were saved just prior to Dendup’s execution in Yolahn Square by Steela and Bonteri.
Throughout the arc, Gerrera showed an eagerness for conflict, often flying in the face of Bonteri and Steela’s plans. That rashness and arrogance ultimately resulted in Steela’s death — something that Gerrera continued to blame himself for from that day forward.
Want to share information about which episodes you should check out ahead of Rogue One? My Resistance Radio co-host, Mikey, created this handy and easily sharable infographic.
Where to watch: Catch up on Netflix in the U.S.
‘Bloodline’ by Claudia Gray
Saw Gerrera wasn’t a major player in Claudia Gray’s Bloodline, but it certainly gave us an indication of his role as part of the rebellion.
Set six years prior to The Force Awakens, Bloodline dealt primarily with Leia’s role as a member of the New Republic’s Galactic Senate. Throughout the novel Leia contended with internal and external threats to the Republic and the formation of the Resistance.
In one exchange between Ransolm Casterfo and Leia, regarding the actions of the Rebel Alliance against the Empire, Casterfo described them as “terrorist tactics.” Particularly “the campaigns of Saw Gerrera’s Partisans.”
Those Partisans were one of the many cells that made up the Rebel Alliance.
Coupled with some of Gerrera’s actions in The Clone Wars, it certainly sets the scene for what he is willing to do in the name of freedom. Though whether Gerrera is still around post-Return of the Jedi is less certain.
Where to read: Buy Bloodlines for $9.99 on Amazon or sign up for a 30-day free trial to Audible.
‘Catalyst’ by James Luceno
Catalyst is the recently released tie-in novel for Rogue One centered around the Erso family.
During Catalyst, we’re introduced to the smuggler Has Omitt. Omitt performs odd jobs for Orson Krennic, and even helped one of Krennic’s former assistant move some old Separatist arms. Only, that simple run wasn’t quite as simple, or innocent, as Omitt had been led to believe.
When Omitt drops the payload, the Empire arrives, and seizes the planet — wanting it for its mining capabilities, to provide resources for the Death Star. Once Omitt discovers the truth, he recruits Saw Gerrera to his cause and fights back against the Empire.
Later in the novel, after Galen Erso discovers the research he’s been conducting for Krennic’s Project Celestial Power is not, in fact, aimed at producing renewable energy but rather to created the super weapon known as the Death Star, he decides to flee with his wife, Lyra, and daughter, Jyn.
The pilot that arrives to ship them off Coruscant is none other than Saw Gerrera — who Galen Erso was able contact via Has Omitt. Gerrera transports the Ersos to Lah’mu, and though he cannot remain with them, promises to visit whenever he can.
A younger Jyn Erso, in particular, forms a strong bond with Gerrera. A friendship that will likely extend into Rogue One.
Where to read: Buy Catalyst for $17.39 on Amazon or sign up for a 30-day free trial to Audible.
Other notable mentions
- In Ultimate Star Wars, the description that accompanies Saw Gerrera states that he “becomes a key figure in the rebellion against the Empire.”
- During Star Wars: Rebels episode, “The Honorable Ones,” Agent Kallus mentioned a Lasat mercenary that worked for Gerrera. That mercenary took out an entire Imperial unit, of which Kallus was the lone survivor.
- Speaking on The Star Wars Show, Pablo Hidalgo said of Gerrera, “He’s an extreme Rebel. He’s definitely against the Empire, but he does things that morally push against the kind of things that Bail Organa and Mon Mothma stand for. He’s definitely the more extreme side of the Rebel Alliance.”
- Kathleen Kennedy, current president of Lucasfilm, concurred with Hidalgo’s comments. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, she said, “He’s on the fringe of the Rebel Alliance. Even [they] are a little concerned about him.”
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