Skeleton Crew Creators Confirm Star Wars Series’ High Republic Connection

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew creators Jon Watts and Christopher Ford have confirmed the show has a connection to the franchise’s High Republic era. The “Great Work” the citizens of At Attin frequently reference over the course of the series is meant to tie into Chancellor Lina Soh’s own series of Great Works mentioned in several High Republic books. Following the premiere of the Skeleton Crew finale, “The Real Good Guys,” Watts and Ford spoke with Collider and were asked about the connection. “Yeah, I mean I didn’t want to have to like fully step into that part of the universe and [have the] people working on it be like ‘It is that!’ But it’s supposed to feel connected,” Watts said. “So if it’s not literally connected it’s still an idea that existed in the galaxy at a certain time of like ‘We can do better. We can do great things.’”

Watts added that the people of At Attin and Soh “were coming from the same place if they’re not directly related.” Elaborating on this, Ford said, “The idea of — because they’re secluded — what it originally meant, could have evolved over time.”

Readers of the High Republic published materials are very familiar with Soh’s Great Works, a series of projects overseen by the Chancellor to help push galactic affairs forward. Perhaps the most notable of these was the construction of the Starlight Beacon, a space station that aided in navigating through the Outer Rim and contained a Jedi temple. Among the other Great Works were the Republic Fair, the Quarren/Mon Calamari treaty, and the establishment of communications relays. Despite their prominence during this era, the Great Works are not referenced on The Acolyte, the first on-screen project set during the High Republic.

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On Skeleton Crew, the Great Work is ultimately revealed to be the manufacturing of Old Republic credits. At the beginning of the show, At Attin is shown to be isolated from the rest of the Star Wars galaxy, protected by the Barrier. The planet’s citizens are unaware of events such as the Galactic Civil War; in one episode, Wim and his friends don’t know that Alderaan has been destroyed. The implication is that At Attin has operated in its bubble for an extended period of time, making currency for a government that fell long ago.

Skeleton Crew was noteworthy for limiting connections to the larger Star Wars franchise. Its story stood on its own, never tying into other series like The Mandalorian or Ahsoka. This marked a refreshing change of pace for a property that’s arguably been too reliant on callbacks, but given Star Wars’ enduring history, some Easter eggs were to be expected. What makes this High Republic reference great is that it’s subtle enough to not be distracting for viewers hoping to just enjoy Skeleton Crew‘s narrative, but those who have read the High Republic books will take delight in being able to connect the dots. This was a way for Skeleton Crew to pay homage to Star Wars history without calling too much attention to itself.

Based on Watts’ comments, it sounds like that even if the Great Work was not a direct continuation of Chancellor Soh’s initiative, it took inspiration from what Soh was trying to accomplish. The people of At Attin were committed to contributing to a greater society, and it will be interesting to see if the planet’s history is explored at some point. At Attin is one of the more unique locations in the Star Wars franchise, and there’s a lot of untapped potential there. While a potential Skeleton Crew Season 2 would most likely look forward and examine the repercussions of the Barrier being lifted, perhaps At Attin’s past and connections to the High Republic could be the subject of a novel or comic series.