This month commemorates two decades since the premiere of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, the thrilling finale of the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy. Originally released on May 19, 2005, the movie was George Lucas’s last direct involvement in a Star Wars film before the sale of Lucasfilm to Disney seven years later.
As viewers entered Revenge of the Sith, they knew they would witness Anakin Skywalker's descent into the Dark Side and his transformation into Darth Vader. Yet, the fate of other Jedi remained a key question. The answer came in the form of Order 66, Emperor Palpatine’s sinister plot commanding Clone Troopers—who had fought alongside the Jedi in the Clone Wars—to suddenly turn against and eliminate their former allies. With thousands of Jedi active around that time, it was only natural that some would escape Palpatine’s grasp—not only those who had to survive for the Original Trilogy’s story.
Among the handful of Jedi survivors of Order 66 now acknowledged in official Star Wars lore, we’ve chosen the ten most impactful. While some lived only a little longer, others persisted much further along the timeline—and for a few, their ultimate fate remains a mystery. No matter the outcome, each of these Jedi managed to endure at least one more day after Palpatine uttered the dreaded command, “Execute Order 66.”
A few ground rules: To qualify, characters must have once been under the Jedi Order’s authority—whether as Padawans, Jedi Knights, Jedi Masters, or even young Jedi Initiates. This excludes Force-sensitives like Maul (or his ex-mentor Palpatine). It also leaves out beings like Jod Na Nawood, who received minimal Jedi training but never formally joined the Order or visited the Jedi Temple.
Even so, we debated Asajj Ventress’s eligibility. For over 20 years, she was mentored by Jedi Master Ky Narec and recognized as his Padawan while stranded on Rattatak. Still, she never visited Coruscant or encountered the Jedi Council before Narec's death. Combined with her subsequent turn to the dark side under Count Dooku, her official Jedi standing is ambiguous. For these reasons, she receives an honorable mention. And speaking of which, let's also address...
Ranking the Jedi Who Survived Order 66
View 12 Images
