At the end of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, all of its main characters died in their very first film appearance. Lucasfilm then shifted their focus back onto Rey, Finn, and Kylo Ren. For a time, it was believed that we had seen the last of the Rogue One squad. That changed when Andor was announced, a Disney+ series focusing on a younger Cassian Andor before the Age of Rebellion.

While Cassian Andor was a great addition to the Star Wars mythos, he did not have the screen time to become a fan-favorite. Part of the beauty of the Disney+ series has been expanding on less prominent characters. Disney+ has helped bring characters like Bo-Katan Kryze and Ahsoka Tano to the forefront. If Cassian Andor can get his own Disney+ series, so should another character from Rogue One. Here’s why Donnie Yen’s Chirrut Îmwe should also be given his own series.

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Chirrut Îmwe Was a Fan-Favorite Character

     Lucasfilm Ltd.

Nearly four decades after the release of A New Hope, Lucasfilm made Chirrut Îmwe one of the Rebel spies mentioned in the film’s opening crawl. Portrayed by actor and expert martial artist Donnie Yen, Chirrut was incredibly wise, charming, and even funny. Rogue One introduced many new characters and brought back old ones like Grand Moff Tarkin and Darth Vader. Despite being very different from characters Star Wars had seen before, Chirrut was seamlessly integrated into the Star Wars universe.

Jyn Erso, Cassian Andor, and Director Orson Krennic were the central characters of Rogue One. Although Chirrut was part of the film’s titular team, he was more of a supporting character rather than being in the lead. Regardless, Chirrut Îmwe was a major standout and was often even talked about more than the main characters. In a poll titled “Who is Your Favorite Character in Rogue One?” on the official Star Wars website, Chirrut received the most amount of votes. He received 24% of votes, with Jyn Erso at 14% and Cassian Andor at 8%.

Exciting Fight Scenes

Although Chirrut Îmwe was attuned to the mystical energy of the Force, he was never a Jedi. He was not equipped with a lightsaber and instead used a staff and a handmade lightbow. Through many years of discipline and training, Chirrut became one of the best fighters in Star Wars franchise history. He was able to defeat a large group of stormtroopers in Rogue One all by himself. If Chirrut had been given a lightsaber, he would have been unstoppable.

Outside of Star Wars, Yen has utilized his martial arts background in films such as Raging Fire and Big Brother. From 2008 to 2019, Yen portrayed the famous Wing Chun grandmaster known as Ip Man in four films. The real-life Ip Man trained students who became martial arts masters, with Bruce Lee being one of them. Not just any actor could have been cast as Ip Man, but Yen proved to have been excellent casting.

There has been growing popularity in more martial arts-based stories, from Cobra Kai to Mortal Kombat to Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. After Rogue One, many fans wanted to see more fight scenes in Star Wars featuring Donnie Yen. In the meantime, Yen has brought his talents to the role of Caine in John Wick: Chapter 4. It would be a shame if Chirrut Îmwe’s potential is never fully realized. Fans are already wanting to see more, and Donnie Yen has already expressed interest in a possible return.

Guardians of the Whills

Franchise creator George Lucas titled the first draft of what would become Star Wars the “Journal of the Whills, Part I.” The Whills were supposed to be microsopic life-forms that communicated with the midi-chlorians and controlled the universe. As reported by CBR, Lucas would have explored the “microbiotic world” of the Whills had he made his sequel trilogy. The sequel trilogy that ended up officially happening did not do this. But the concept of the Whills continued to live on in the new canon.

In Rogue One, Chirrut Îmwe along with his close companion, Baze Malbus, were Guardians of the Whills. The two Rebels were part of an order of spiritual warrior-monks defending the Temple of the Kyber in Jedha City. Unfortunately for the Guardians of the Whills, the Temple of the Kyber was a location of interest for the Galactic Empire. The Empire wanted kyber crystals wherever it could find them. The kyber crystals were taken from the temple and used for the Death Star, later destroying Jedha City.

As far as religious orders go, the Star Wars films have always had a narrow focus on the Jedi and the Sith. Fans of the expanded media, however, know that there are many more spiritual organizations across the galaxy. The Guardians of the Whills have been one of the most important, but they have still yet to be explored in-depth. A new television series could focus more on the spiritual side of Star Wars, something that has always been at the heart of the franchise.

While aligned with the light side of the Force, the Guardians of the Whills avoided falling into the same traps as the Jedi. Chirrut focused on his connection with the Force rather than attaching himself to a failing Republic. Rogue One has opened the door for many great storytelling opportunities surrounding the character of Chirrut Îmwe. If there is enough fan demand, perhaps Yen’s character will return sooner rather than later.