Following last week’s bumper edition of The Week in Star Wars, it’s a slightly shorter version this time round. But we do have J.J. Abrams talking about the lack of Luke Skywalker and trailers while Kevin Smith talks about seeing “a chunk” of the movie and how it made him feel…
After all the theories coming out of the final trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the Internet is still asking why Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker has been kept off the trailer, poster and all marketing materials. According to director J.J. Abrams, it’s all by design. “These are good questions to be asking. I can’t wait for you to find out the answer,” Abrams said on the red carpet of the GLSEN Respect Awards. When pushed if there was a reason why Luke has been left off the marketing for the movie, Abrams simply responded with, “it’s no accident…”
…Harrison Ford was asked about the absence of Luke Skywalker on Jimmy Kimmel this week, and while he didn’t offer up any answers, he was unsurprisingly full of praise for the movie: “There wasn’t room… No. There’s a very good reason, but I can’t tell you. I can tell you this – it’s really, really good. Trust me, it’s really good. The new cast – Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac – are phenomenal. J.J. Abrams has made an incredible movie. You will not be disappointed, at all. I promise you…”
…If you really missed seeing Luke Skywalker in the trailer, then here’s a trailer that features him all over the place. And if that wasn’t enough, here’s the all Jar Jar version…
…Oh, and here’s the cast of Inside Out watching the trailer…
…Speaking of the trailer, Abrams has also said that there will be no more of them before the film comes out. “The next thing is really going to be the movie,” he said when asked about the next steps of the marketing campaign. “They’re be commercials, but no more trailers…”
…Gwendoline Christie spoke about her excitement at playing the movies’ first female villain Captain Phasma, the “matter of fact” approach to Phasma’s gender: “We know very little about her at this stage, but what I think people are drawn to is that this is a very progressive female character. We see Captain Phasma, and we see the costume from head to toe, and we know that it is a woman. But we are used to, in our media, connecting to female characters via the way that they look, from the way they are made flesh. We are actually connecting to a female character as a human being. It wasn’t just about what I was expressing above the neck, it was also as focused on what I was expressing below the neck. It was an interesting acting experience as well as a fangirl’s dream. She’s Star Wars’ first female villain. It’s incredible, it’s timely, and I’m very proud to be a part of it…”
…Rumour time now and a report has emerged suggesting that The Force Awakens will see the return of another classic character from the original saga. No (potential) spoilers here, but if you’re interested you can find out their identity here…
…While we all wait patiently for the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, director Kevin Smith (Clerks) revealed this week on his Hollywood Babble On podcast that he’s seen “a chunk” of it. “I saw a buddy of mine, a filmmaker friend, who is making this movie that is so fucking wonderful,” the director said. “And I saw a chunk of it. And it was… spellbinding. It’s the only way I can describe it. It’s like, I love movies and sometimes I over praise them and shit, but this is the only way I can describe this: it was like – not figuratively, literally – being transported to the fountain of youth. And having the fountain of youth taking me back to 1977. First time I saw a picture called Star Wars. I can’t say much more. There’s a lot of hope out there,” he continued. “But there’s still that cynical edge that’s still leaning forward in their seats and saying, ‘could it be? Did he do it?’ And I fucking promise you – as I hold back the tears – he beyond fucking did it….”
…Before we move away from The Force Awakens, here’s Ricky Church’s article asking whether the nostalgia factor of the movie is a bad thing…
…If you’ve ever thought the LEGO Star Destroyers didn’t capture the scale and majesty of the ships in the movie, then this fella has the answer by building a 15,000 piece mega structure. Impressive, most impressive…
…A trailer and poster for Star Wars documentary Elstree 1976 were also released this week, which sadly doesn’t have a release date yet: In 1976, during the hottest summer on record, Star Wars was shot in suburban North London. Nobody involved had any idea how big the film would become, many couldn’t even remember the title. Yet, for the extras and actors in smaller roles, their faces hidden in masks and helmets, this seemingly insignificant job would go on to colour their lives even four decades later…
…Lucasfilm released the latest instalment of Rebels Recon, which took us inside this week’s episode of Star Wars Rebels, ‘Always Two There Are’, as well as looking ahead to the next episode ‘Brothers of the Broken Horn’ and featuring some comments from Sarah Michelle Gellar about her role as the Inquisitor known as the Seventh Sister. You can also check out Chris Cooper’s reviews of Relics of the Old Republic and Always Two There Are, as well as a new clip from Brothers of the Broken Horn..
…C-3P0, R2-D2 and Warwick Davis will feature in a sketch on the BBC’s upcoming Children in Need show…
…With three weeks to go until its release, Electronic Arts released a rather impressive launch trailer for Star Wars Battlefront, which features new gameplay from the multiplayer shooter, as well as a look at the hero characters in action…
…To coincide with that trailer launch, Bioware and EA dropped a launch trailer for Knights of the Fallen Empire, the new expansion for Star Wars: The Old Republic…
…We’ve already seen several variant covers for the first issue of Marvel’s upcoming crossover Star Wars: Vader Down #1 (see here and here), and now we’ve got a look at another four retailer exclusive variants…
…And lastly, there’s just the one comic book preview for the week which is Star Wars #11, set for release on November 4th: Chewbacca Unleashed! Skywalker in chains!Han Solo…with a ball and chain?!?. Check it out here…
That’s all for this week – may The Force be with you…
Luke Owen is the Deputy Editor of Flickering Myth and a contributor on The Flickering Myth Movie Show. You can follow him on Twitter @ThisisLukeOwen.
