Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge

A young Padawan swings across a chasm during the Strength Trials.

Have you ever wanted to train to be a Jedi Knight? In the new game show, Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge, Padawans (contestants between ages 8 to 14) do just that.

The show, which recently debuted on Star Wars Kids on YouTube, challenges kids to compete in a series of trials involving strength, bravery, and knowledge. Once the teams prove themselves, says the show’s co-executive producer Scott Bromley, they go on to the Jedi Temple, “where they test everything they’ve learned.”

Those who are victorious are awarded a Kyber Crystal, which they put in their lightsaber, and become Jedi Knights.”

During my visit to the set in California last fall, Bromley and fellow co-producer Steve Blank discussed how they created the show.

“We had separate but similar ideas and put in contact with each other,” Blank said. “Both of us were fans of these types of shows when we were kids, and we always imagined how much fun it would be to create them.”

Bromley and Blank both worked at Lucasfilm, the producer of the original Star Wars series. Their ideas combined Star Wars with a kids’ game show.

“We wondered how to mash these two ideas up,” Bromley added. “We got together and planned this all out.” 

A Padawan helms the cockpit of the Jedi Starcruiser Athylia. 

MEET THE CONTESTANTS

Best friends Brayden, 11, and Griffin, 10, from Los Angeles competed on the Orange Team on the challenge course.

“It’s been a bit nerve-racking,” Brayden said. “I got so nervous, I thought I was sick. Then I did the first course and felt relieved. I felt way better.” 

The competition may seem like all fun and games, but it takes a lot of practice to complete the challenges and answer the questions correctly. To prepare, the Orange Team watched Star Wars movies and practiced on an obstacle course in Griffin’s backyard. 

The new droid duo of AD-3 (voiced by Mary Holland) and LX-R5

A “LESSON OF HOPE”

Ahmed Best, the show’s host, is known to many Star Wars fans for voicing Jar Jar Binks in the prequels. He described the appeal of the Star Wars franchise to fans of all ages.

“The thing that brings people, especially kids, to Star Wars is this lesson of hope, and I think this show does this very well,” Best said. “The Jedi give you something to believe in. They are peacekeepers. They are people who want everyone to work together and get along.”