Star Wars Rebels Release Date Announced, Rumored To Set Up Inquisitor Plot For JJ Abrams 'Star Wars Episode VII,' Watch Extended Preview Trailer Here [VIDEO]

Disney has announced the release date for "Star Wars Rebels." "Star Wars Rebels" initial release date will be with the one hour made for tv movie "Spark Of Rebellion" Friday October 3 at 9PM on the Disney Chanel. The full series release date will be Monday October 13 at 9Pm on the Disney chanel.

A sneak preview of "Spark of Rebellion," that originally screened at San Diego's Comic-Con, will be available to users of the Watch Disney XD app and on WatchDisneyXD.com starting Monday, Sept. 29.

"Star Wars Rebels" will take place between the events of "Revenge of the Sith" and "A New Hope" (Between the old movies and the awful, awful, terrible new movies) This period spans about two decades. The animated series is set in a time where the Empire is securing its grip on the galaxy and hunting down the last of the Jedi Knights as a fledgling rebellion against the Empire is taking shape.

The crew of the Ghost starship: Jedi Kanan, pilot Hera, street-smart teenager Ezra, the "muscle" Zeb, warrior Sabine and droid Chopper, are the new characters who will be fighting the Empire who has new enemies like the Inquisitor.

 Rebels looks to have a kid-friendly bent to it during its early goings, as illustrated by the previously-released 3-minute shorts introducing the main characters - be it "cantankerous old" astromech droid Chopper or the "warrior firebrand" Sabine (voiced by Tiya Sircar). Other central players on the Rebels series include "cowboy Jedi" Kanan (Freddie Prinze, Jr.), "ace pilot" Hera (Vanessa Taylor), the "muscle" Zeb (Steve Blum), and "street-smart teenager" Ezra (Taylor Gray). Meanwhile, working for the Dark Side on the show will be such folk as The Inquisitor (Jason Isaacs) and Imperial Agent Kallus (David Oyelowo).

Dave Filoni, Simon Kinberg and Carrie Beck created the series, which is a Lucasfilm Animation production. Greg Weisman is an executive producer alongside Filoni and Kinberg. The visuals were influenced by original Star Wars concept artist Ralph McQuarrie.

Disney is giving the show a major push across its channels around the world, making it available in 34 languages in 163 countries.

Rumor has it that that the series will introduce key elements that factor into the storyline for director J.J. Abrams' Episode VII in 2015. By establishing that the Inquisitors (jedi hunters) have been around for upwards of 50 years before Episode VII takes place, Rebels would help to ease the transition into them becoming the primary antagonists in the new Star Wars live-action film trilogy.

"It's the origin story of the Rebel Alliance," executive producer Simon Kinberg told fans at San Diego's Comic-Con International last month, comparing "Star Wars Rebels" to a story of the American Revolution. "They're rebels who don't imagine they'll be part of a larger organization one day."

In addition to Prinze, the "Star Wars Rebels" voice cast includes Steve Blum, Taylor Gray, Vanessa Marshall and David Oyelowo, who will play Agent Kallus, the so-called Rebel hunter, who works for the Imperial Security Bureau and is the right-hand man to the lead bad guy, the imposing, villainous Inquisitor.

Check back often for more information as we get close to the "Star Wars Rebels" release date