How Long Would It Take to Watch All Star Wars Movies?

Star Wars is one of the most popular science fiction series and if you are looking to get into the genre it should definitely be on your watch list. The series includes eleven movies and it is safe to say that you could not finish the series in one go despite the binge potential the story holds. This brings forth a very obvious question; how long would it take you to watch all the Star Wars movies?

It would take you 26 hours and 55 minutes to finish the prequels, the sequels, and the original trilogy as well as the two standalone movies Solo and Rogue One.

If you want to know the run times of every movie in this series specifically and why there are no released extended versions despite the fact that each movie has additional footage keep reading this article.

How long would it take to watch all the Star Wars movies?

Star Wars is one of those beloved franchises that are on everyone’s watch lists. It is a pop-culture staple and one of the best-known pieces of the science fiction genre.

However, the series started with only three movies. What is known as the original trilogy today contains episodes four, five, and six. If you wanted to watch A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back and The Return of Jedi it would take you 7 hours and 36 minutes.

As the popularity of the series grew, the creator of the story George Lucas decided to add another three movies which would serve as prequels to the original trilogy. 

The prequels contain episodes one, two, and three, which were released between 1999 and 2005. The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith have a combined watch time of 6 hours and 58 minutes.

Despite the fact that the prequel series was not well received the series was revived in 2015. Episodes seven, eight, and nine were released between 2015 and 2019 and they served as the sequels to the original trilogy. 

The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker would take 7 hours and 9 minutes out of your day to finish them.

Taking this into consideration, if you wanted to watch the prequels, the sequels and the original trilogy in one sitting, you better supply yourself with caffeine and snacks since it would take you 22 hours and 26 minutes. 

However, this is not the entire series. Given that the revival of the series garnered a lot of attention and the new movies were received relatively well, the fans got to experience two additional movies.

Those two movies are Rogue One and Solo. Rogue One totals at 2 hours and 14 minutes and Solo clocks in at 2 hours and 15 minutes. The combined run time is 4 hours and 29 minutes.

This amount adds up to 26 hours and 55 minutes once it is combined with the run time of episodes one through nine. This puts us over the 24-hour mark. 

If you actually chose to watch all the movies it will take you longer than an entire day, if you take no breaks and arrange the movies to start exactly after the previous one ended. 

Despite the fact that the story is extremely interesting and the universe makes it easy to immerse yourself into the story it is reasonable to assume that you would either need some time off or even if you are super resilient and determined to watch the series all the way through you’ll most likely get sleepy after you finish the original trilogy. 

Star Wars: Episode I- The Phantom Menace

Episode one is 2 hours and 16 minutes long and it introduces us to a galaxy far far away, where the Galactic Republic and the Trade federation are on the brink of war after the Federation blocked the planet Naboo.

In mids of preparation for a full-scale invasion of the planet and the Jedi order sends two Jedi, Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi to negotiate.

They are ordered by the Jedi Council to investigate the return of the Sith, whom they had believed to be extinct for more than a millennium. They encounter a junk dealer, Anakin Skywalker, a gifted pilot and engineer who has built a protocol droid, C-3PO. Anakin wins the race and joins the group to be trained as a Jedi, leaving behind his mother, Shmi.

On Naboo, Padmé reveals herself as the queen before the Gungans to gain their trust. Jar Jar is promoted to general and joins his tribe in a battle against the droid army. 

At the end of the movie, the Jedi are confronted by the Sith Lord they were sent to investigate and Qui Gon is killed by him before Obi-Wan Kenobi manages to defeat him.

There is an extended version of the movie, however, the difference between the movies is so negligible that most people don’t even know there is an extended version. The difference consists of a little bit of extra footage from two scenes that don’t contribute to the overall story a lot. 

Star Wars: Episode II- Attack of the Clones

Episode II clocks in at 2 hours and 22 minutes of footage. The story takes place 10 years after the battle depicted in the first movie. After the said conflict, the republic is now threatened by the Separatist movement organized by former Jedi Master Count Dooku. 

Obi-Wan is sent by the Jedi Council to investigate a peculiar occurrence and he discovers n army of clones being produced for the Republic under the name of Sifo Dyas.

After he gets captured, Anakin and Padmé head to Geonosis to rescue him and they are captured by Jango. Dooku sentences the trio to death, but they are saved by a battalion of clone troopers led by Yoda, Mace Windu, and other Jedi.

There is no extended version of Episode II however different versions contain different scenes which were deleted from the original cut to maintain the PG rating.

Star Wars: Episode III- Revenge of the Sith

The third episode of the franchise is 2 hours and 20 minutes long and it follows Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker on their mission to rescue the Supreme Chancellor Palpatine from the Separatist commander. 

The central theme of the movie is the battle of the Jedi and the resurfacing Sith Lords and Anikin’s inner battle between the dark and light side of the Force. 

To protect Padme, Anikin gives in to the Dark side after being manipulated by Chancellor Palpatine. He battles Obi-Wan and ends up being severely injured after almost killing Padmé while blinded by the rage after she refused to join him. 

There is no concrete evidence that there is an extended cut of the third episode, however, after the fans came to a conclusion they started a petition on Change.org for Disney to release the alleged 4 hours long extended cut.

Star Wars: Episode IV- A New HopeThe first-ever released movie in the franchise clocks in at 2 hours and 5 minutes and it follows the Rebel Alliance on their way to destroy the Galactic Empire’s Death Star. 

We follow Anikn’s and Padmé’s daughter Leia who stole the plans for the Death Star and their son Luke who finds the droid where Leia hid the plans once they fleed to the desert planet Tatooine.

Grand Moff Tarkin orders the planet of Alderaan to be destroyed. Han abandons the Rebels after collecting his reward for rescuing Leia. Obi-Wan sacrifices his life in a lightsaber duel with Vader, allowing the rest of the group to escape the Death Star with Leia.

The question with the extended version of this movie is a bit more complicated since there are at least 10 different versions of the movie, not including TV edits and pan & scan releases.

The extended version includes a bit of extra footage, a few lightsaber effects and a different name which was subsequently changed to what we know today to allow for the franchise to expand and move forward.

Star Wars: Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back

The Empire Strikes Backs takes 2 hours and 7 minutes to explore the state of the Galaxy after the event of destruction of the Death Star and a seemingly successful mission of the Rebel Alliance.

Luke and the rest of the Rebels are now situated on an icy planet Hoth where their new base is located, but they have to flee after it is uncovered by the Empire. 

While Leia and Han are headed towards Cloud city where they would hide with Han’s friend Lando, Luke is going to the swamp planet Dagobah to train under Jedi Master Yoda.   

Leia and Han are betrayed by Lando and Darth Vader himself goes after them. After Luke sets out to save them because he sensed they are in danger, he is confronted by Darth Vader and it is revealed that he is Luke’s father.

There is a bit of additional footage, mostly consisting of establishing shots and footage which prolongate the existing shoots, however, an extended version doesn’t exist.

Star Wars: Episode VI- Return of the Jedi

The last movie from the original trilogy is 2 hours and 16 minutes long and it concludes the sage which started during the first movie of the prequel series.

Luke saves Leia and Han from Jabba the Hutt’s palace on Tatooine and then the trio sets out to rejoin with the rest of the Rebel Alliance and destroy the now operational new Death Star. 

After Luke surrenders to Darth Vader and confronting the Emperor, Darth Vader senses Luke has a sister and after a brief fight, he turns back to the Light Side of the Force and helps Luke defeat the Emperor.

There is a small amount of deleted scenes that only extend the existing scenes and there are two of them. The first one shows Darth Vader’s reaction to the fight between Luke and the Emperor and the second one which shows the Rebel’s victory party.  

Star Wars: Episode VII- The Force Awakens

Thirty years after the Galactic Civil War, the First Order has risen from the fallen Galactic Empire and seeks to end the New Republic. The Resistance, backed by the Republic and led by General Leia Organa, opposes the First order. 

Leia searches for her brother, Luke Skywalker, who has gone missing. Rey, Finn, and BB-8 steal the Millennium Falcon and escape the planet Jakku with the map to Luke’s place.

At the Resistance base on D’Qar, BB-8 finds R2-D2, who had been inactive since Luke’s disappearance. As Starkiller Base prepares to fire, the Resistance devises a plan to destroy it by attacking its thermal oscillator. Rey takes the lightsaber and channels the Force to defeat Kylo in a duel.

The theatrical version of the first movie in the sequel trilogy is 2 hours and 15 minutes long and there is an extended version totaling 34 minutes of footage, however, the director J. J. Abrams revealed that it won’t be released as an extended version, but rather as deleted scenes featured on the blue-ray version.

Star Wars: Episode VIII-The Last Jedi

Shortly after the battle of Starkiller Base, General Leia Organa is leading the Resistance forces in evacuating their base when the First Order fleet arrives. Vice-Admiral Holdo assumes command of the Resistance. On Ahch-To, Rey attempts to recruit Luke Skywalker to the Resistance, but Luke refuses to help and says the Jedi should end.

Kylo is ordered to kill Rey, but instead kills Snoke and defeats his Praetorian Guard. Rey hopes that Kylo has abandoned the dark side, but he asks her to rule the galaxy with him. Refusing, she battles him for control of Luke’s lightsaber, bisecting the weapon. Luke appears and confronts the First Order, allowing the surviving Resistance to escape.

The Last Jedi is 2 hours and 32 minutes and the director Rian Johnson revealed that there are deleted scenes and additional footage but that the extended cut would not be released since the theatrical version is the best version of the movie.

Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker

Following a threat of revenge by the revived Emperor Palpatine, Kylo Ren obtains a Sith Wayfinder, leading him to the uncharted planet Exegol. There, he meets Rey, who is continuing her Jedi training under Resistance leader Leia Organa. In a dying act, Leia calls to Kylo through the Force, distracting him as Rey impales him.

Rey transmits her coordinates to R2-D2, allowing the Resistance to follow her to Exegol. There, she confronts Palpatine and he demands that she kill him for his spirit to pass into her. She deflects his lightning with Luke and Leia’s lightsabers, killing him.

The ending movie of the saga as of now is 2 hours and 22 minutes long and allegedly there in 192 minutes long extended cut, however, in true Star Wars fashion it will not be released.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

The story that fills the biggest plot hole of the series is 2 hours and 15 minutes long. There is an extended version and there were rumors of the extended version actually being released, however, as of right now it has not been released. 

Jyn Erso is freed from an Imperial labor camp at Wobani and is brought to the Rebel leader Mon Mothma. She is convinced to find and rescue her father Galen Erso so the Alliance can learn more about the Death Star. Jyn, Cassian, and reprogrammed Imperial droid K-2SO travel to Jedha, where the Empire is removing kyber crystals from the holy city.

The Alliance learns of the raid from intercepted Imperial communications and deploys their fleet in support. K-2SO sacrifices himself so Jyn and Cassian can retrieve the data. Jyn transmits the schematics to the Rebel command ship. The Death Star enters orbit above Scarif and destroys the base.

Solo: A Star Wars Story

The newest addition to the series is 2 hours and 15 minutes long and the extended version does not exist, but there is an expansion on the story in the form of a novelization of the story depicted in the movie.

Orphans Han and Qi’ra escape a local gang and Han vows to return for her. Han joins the Imperial Navy as a flight cadet, being given the surname “Solo” Three years later, Han is serving as an infantryman on Mimban. He encounters a group of criminals posing as Imperial soldiers, led by Tobias Beckett. Beckett enlists them in the gang to steal a shipment of coaxium on Vandor-1.

Enfys arrives, having tracked the team from Vandor, and Lando leaves in the Falcon, deserting everyone else. Han becomes sympathetic to their cause and tries to trick Vos, who reveals Beckett has already alerted him to the double-cross. Vos sends his guards to kill Enfys, but the Cloud Riders overpower them, leaving Vos defenseless. Han confronts Beckett and shoots him before he can return fire.