Where does The Book of Boba Fett take place in the Star Wars timeline?

Boba Fett in The Mandalorian
(Image credit: Disney/Lucasfilm)

Where does The Book of Boba Fett take place in the Star Wars timeline? That's a question that grows more pressing by the episode. After all, when [redacted] shows up, you may be scratching your head in confusion. To truly get to grips with the Disney Plus show, we're going to dive into spoilers for every episode of The Book of Boba Fet so far

With that out of the way, you're most likely on this page after seeing The Mandalorian, Grogu, Luke Skywalker, and Ashoka Tano appear in the series. That puts the Book of Boba Fett directly after the Mandalorian season 2 finale, but way before Star Wars: The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, where Luke appears as an older man.

The Book of Boba Fett timeline has given way to a few cameos and there are still a few characters in that galaxy far, far away who could appear in the show. This guide will clue you into the cameos that may come next. Plus, given the sheer number of upcoming Star Wars movies and shows on the way, knowing when The Book of Boba Fett will help with your understanding of the franchise’s future.

When does The Book of Boba Fett take place in the Star Wars timeline?

The Book of Boba Fett

(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

Before we start, let's quickly establish how the Star Wars calendar works. The timeline revolves around the Battle of Yavin – otherwise known as the first assault on the Death Star in A New Hope. That’s referred to at 0 BBY, Before the Battle of Yavin, while the years after are ANY, After the Battle of Yavin.

The Book of Boba Fett takes place alongside The Mandaloirna in 9 ABY – nine years after A New Hope and five years after the Emperor’s defeat in Return of the Jedi. Here is the full picture of where The Book of Boba Fett takes place in the Star Wars timeline – as per current canon.

  • Star Wars: The Phantom Menace – 32 BBY
  • Star Wars: Attack of the Clones – 22 BBY
  • The Clone Wars – 22 BBY – 19 BBY
  • Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith – 19 BBY
  • The Bad Batch – 19 BBY
  • Solo: A Star Wars Story – 13 BBY – 10 BBY
  • Star Wars Rebels – 5 BBY – 1 BBY
  • Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – 1 BBY
  • A New Hope – 0 BBY
  • The Empire Strikes Back – 3 ABY
  • Return of the Jedi – 4 ABY
  • The Mandalorian season 1 and 2 – 9 ABY
  • The Book of Boba Fett – 9ABY
  • Star Wars: The Force Awakens – 34 ABY
  • Star Wars: The Last Jedi – 34 ABY
  • Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker – 35 ABY

The Book of Boba Fett timeline: what does that mean for the show?

The Book of Boba Fett

(Image credit: Lucasfilm)

Let's start with the flashbacks. The Book of Boba Fett sees Boba reliving his days being stuck in the Sarlacc pit, which the bounty hunter was eaten by during Return of the Jedi. Boba escapes and is then captured by Tusken Raiders. After his time with them, Boba meets the bloodthirsty Fennec Shand just after she was shot – something that happened in The Mandalorian season 1. How Boba gets his armor back is revealed in The Mandalorian season 2.

It's worth noting that Fennec Shand appeared in Star Wars: The Bad Batch, which took place between Revenge of the Sith (19 BBY) and A New Hope (0 BBY). Her history is further explored in that animated series. 

The current The Book of Boba Fett timeline sees Boba take over Jabba the Hutt's former throne in Mos Espa. That's after Jabba's death in Return of the Jedi, which was followed by Bib Fortuna claiming the throne, only for Boba to return and kill the evil Twi'lek. From here, Boba tries to rule Mos Espa but comes to fight the rival Pyke Syndicate – but Boba's not alone. He employs Din Djarin to help him. 

As The Book of Boba Fett takes place after the first two seasons of The Mandalorian, Din does not have Baby Yoda, AKA Grogu, by his side, having given the youngling to Luke Skywalker to look after. Luke is training Grogu, while Ashoka Tano, also seen in the second season of The Mandalorian, swings by his new Jedi temple to have a chat. We can expect The Mandalorian season 3 to take place after the events of The Book of Boba Fett.

With The Book of Boba Fett's non-flashback timeline being 9 BBY, there's plenty of room for cameos. We've seen Mando and Luke, but Han Solo and Leia are still alive and could show up. Lando Calrissian is another person very much still active. In other words, there's a variety of characters who could show up in Boba's story, but how many of them will travel to Mos Espa remains to be seen.

And now for the biggest question of them all: will there be podracing? We've already seen Mando fly the podracing circuit outside Mos Eisley. Let's hope Sebulba makes a cameo and flies around, too.

If you're yet to start watching The Book of Boba Fett, be sure to check out the latest Disney Plus bundles. Because the Disney Plus free trial doesn't exist anymore, that's your best bet if you want to get a Disney Plus sign-up deal for less.

Jack Shepherd
Freelance Journalist

Jack Shepherd is the former Senior Entertainment Editor of GamesRadar. Jack used to work at The Independent as a general culture writer before specializing in TV and film for the likes of GR+, Total Film, SFX, and others. You can now find Jack working as a freelance journalist and editor.