What happens to a governed body when a Republic becomes an Empire? How does a declaration of power transition into reality? These are just some of the questions author Alexander Freed explores in his upcoming book “Star Wars: The Mask of Fear.”

The first book in a planned trilogy called “Reign of the Empire,” “The Mask of Fear” leads readers through the first year of the Galactic Empire. With the exception of the animated series “The Bad Batch,” this marks one of the first explorations into the immediate transitory period following Palpatine’s grasp of power at the end of the film “Revenge of the Sith.”

In a Q&A with us, Freed answered a few questions to further explain his thought process behind “The Mask of Fear” and what he hopes Star Wars fans gain from this addition to the franchise.

You have a long, extensive history of writing for Star Wars across various mediums. Most of your novels for the franchise focus on the Imperial/Rebellion Era, including the upcoming “The Mask of Fear.” How did that experience affect the writing/conceptualizing for this latest novel?

One thing that interests me is grounding the heroics of the Star Wars universe in a galactic culture that feels messy and complex and believable. I’ve written stories set at the height of the Rebellion and at the war’s end, but “The Mask of Fear” gave me a chance to work backward and really look deeply at how the galaxy changed and evolved. There is, I hope, a compelling through line when you look at the evolution of a society — of its politics, of its military, of its corporations and criminal underworld — from “The Mask of Fear” to “Rogue One” to “Battlefront: Twilight Company” to “Alphabet Squadron.”

The setting of the early Empire has all the seeds of what’s coming, but it’s such a different world. No one knows how bad things will get — the idea of a planet-killing superweapon is a fantasy, and after the violence of the Clone Wars the thought of another civil war is anathema to most people. And although we (the audience) know how deeply the Empire will corrupt its servants, what makes an Imperial administrator any different than a Republic loyalist when the changes have barely begun?

That’s the sort of stuff that was in my head, and hopefully it’s made it onto the page in an entertaining story full of weirdness and wonder and drama.

Your “Rogue One” novelization includes a few minor, in-depth looks at Mon Mothma’s headspace during the events of the film. What was it like diving back into an earlier version of her character for “The Mask of Fear?“

I’ve got a deep love for Mon Mothma. I find her a fascinating character, and she’s worked her way into quite a few of my stories. So I was enormously excited to give her center stage in “The Mask of Fear.” It’s also the first chance I’ve had to showcase Mon in her natural habitat — she’s, at heart, a political creature, and while she may not be at the height of her influence in the days after the Emperor’s rise she knows how to strike a backroom deal, where to court allies, how to use senate procedures to her advantage, and so forth. It was fun to lean into that and show her wielding the formidable skills that she’ll one day apply in the very different context of the Rebellion.

(And if anyone ever offers me a chance at a New Republic Mon Mothma novel, looking at how she adapts those skills to a political context once again… well, I’d be interested to try!)

A publisher tagline for “The Mask of Fear” claims the novel is “for fans of ‘Andor.'” Did the style of the “Andor” series influence your writing in any way? If so, how?

It’s less about direct influence and more about playing in the same sandbox. There’s some character continuity between them, of course — Mon Mothma and her husband Perrin, Saw Gerrera — but on a thematic level they are both interested in what it means to live under an authoritarian regime, the psychological harm that builds up under those conditions, and the sacrifices people make. “Andor” is also exceptionally good at maintaining a sense of tension and vulnerability in its characters, and that might be the biggest source of inspiration.

Whether fans of “Andor” enjoy it is, in the end, up to the fans — but I do hope it ends up being true!

Alongside Mon Mothma, “The Mask of Fear” explores other important Rebellion characters like Saw Gerrera and Bail Organa. All three represent different aspects/beliefs of the future Rebellion. How did you approach writing these early versions of them?

It’s funny, because we’ve seen glimpses of all three characters across the Star Wars timeline. We know Mon Mothma didn’t start out as a speeder mechanic and somehow rise to prominence in the Rebellion. We know Saw doesn’t become a pacifist. Bail was never pro-Palpatine. On the surface, none of them seem to change that wildly over the decades.

So the story of the book was always going to be less about “how did a farm boy become a hero” and more about their internal struggles, their relationships, and the events that steered them into revolution. Mon and Bail respect one another, but their working relationship is fraught, and they have very different ideas about the Emperor’s rise that will put them in real conflict. When it comes to Saw, the book takes an outsider’s perspective on him, focusing on his growing militia and asking, in essence, “What sort of person is the first to pick up a gun in a crisis?” We’ll see him in contrast with a new Separatist character, and they’ll bring their own conflict to Mon and Bail.

This isn’t a story about rebels united in cause and principle against oppression. It’s about individuals struggling to even understand the depravity of what they’re facing, and who can’t rely on anyone but themselves.

With “The Mask of Fear” being the start of a planned trilogy with other authors, what do you hope readers come away from this book with? What do you hope it adds to our understanding of Star Wars?

Each book in the trilogy takes place some years after the last, telling a story of Empire and Rebellion at one particular moment in time and — if we do our jobs right — together chronicling a story of the rise of a revolution over the course of a generation. “The Mask of Fear” sets all that in motion, laying the groundwork with both familiar characters like Mon, Bail, and Saw, as well as a cast of new folks.

My hope is that readers find “The Mask of Fear” a satisfying standalone story even as it leads into Rebecca Roanhorse’s follow-up (which promises to be delightful). At best, I’d love people to find that the book offers food for thought and challenging ideas about what it means to live through fraught political times. At worst, the book still hopefully provides on-the-ground insight into those first few months after “Revenge of the Sith!”

“Star Wars: The Mask of Fear” by Alexander Freed releases February 25th, 2025 from Del Rey, an imprint of Penguin Random House.

*We have edited sections of this interview for clarity.