Though I was a child of the 90s and missed out on the original trilogy, the month of May as always been synonymous with Star Wars. Each of the original trilogy films were released in May, as were the prequels. And let’s not forget Solo.
In recent years, even the powers that be have capitalised on the now unofficial official fan holiday of the May 4th, and thankfully, this month in 2026 feels like a return to the old. New products are hitting the shelves tied into the new film, there’s promotional tie-ins such as Burger King which has just hit stores, and we’ll once again find ourselves sitting down in darkened movie theatre to watch a new release from a galaxy far, far away.
Before we take a trip down nostalgia lane, let’s look at everything happening this May.
May 4th
Maul – Shadow Lord sees episodes 9 and 10 released on Disney+. This series, for me, had been top tier quality stuff and I can’t wait to see the ending.
Expect products galore, along with some deals, to be hurled your way from countless retailers also.
Also, Happy May the 4th everyone!
Star Wars Fan Fun Day takes to Blackburn once again in what is always a fantastic time for young and old.
May 6th
Had you heard Celebration LA 2027 tickets go on sale on this date? Expect…well…anything and everything. Best of luck to everyone who will be trying to get tickets on this date.
May 14th
Celebrate the Maker himself as George Lucas celebrates his 82nd birthday.
May 16th/17th
The Power of the Force convention arrives in Cologne, Germany in what is sure to be a powerhouse weekend. Ian McDairmid and Giancarlo Esposito headline.
May 22nd
The Mandalorian and Grogu, the first theatrical Star Wars film in nearly seven years, arrives in cinemas around the world.
May 25th
The original film celebrates its 49th birthday.
May 28th
This marks the one-year countdown to Star Wars: Starfighter. Don’t expect anything on this until the final third of the year at the earliest, as all gears will be shifting to make The Mandalorian and Grogu a success.
Trip down May Lane
Growing up in the prequel era, I was spoilt. My birthday falls in May, which was just a godsent back in the day, and so each birthday was filled with Star Wars goodness from top to bottom.
In year of 2002, Attack of the Clones arrived in cinemas Thursday May 16th. My birthday fell on Saturday and being as my old man used to work away back then, my folks took me to see the film on my 11th birthday. First though, we stopped by every store imaginable. Unlike today, of course, merch and product tie-ins were everywhere. Toy? Check. Star Wars cereal? Check. Party themed products from Clintons? Check.
The Panini sticker books made up a huge part of my days as a kid. Only Star Wars ones though…obviously. Any birthday money would be spent buying a new packet for 35p and, if memory serves, you could get 6 stickers in that packet. Eventually, you’d only need say 30 but you could only send off to Panini for the last 25 so you spent obscene amounts just to try and get the last few you needed in the wild. I also remember by old man bringing packets back from elsewhere in the country ‘just in case they packet them differently there’. I keep hoping a new Mandalorian one will find its way to shelves soon.
In many ways a child, May could be just as exciting as December. In 2005, Revenge of the Sith opened on May 19th, this time meaning that my birthday was the day before. I can remember the excitement vividly. I was a teenager by this point but for those that weren’t around, the hype for Episode III was insane. I awoke to open presents related to the film. My birthday though? I didn’t care. The film was out tomorrow and I couldn’t wait.
I also remember opening up the masterpiece of a novel that was, still is, the Matthew Stover novelisation of the film. Lucas, unlike Disney, was never that protective over spoilers. Did I dare to open a page to see might what be happening? It was an unbelievable time to be fan.
Now, so heavily linked are Star Wars and May that when Disney announced that the sequels would be shifting to a December release date in 2015, I was flabbergasted and dismayed. Why would they do this? May belongs to Star Wars. I took it back, however, as Christmas and Star Wars quickly became firm friends.
I can’t lie, however, and pretend I’m not excited to see Star Wars back where it belongs. In the fifth month of the year and now, the eighth Star Wars film to be released in its rightful place. Roll on May 22
