In this edition of The Week in Star Wars, we’re looking at the IMAX details for The Force Awakens, we’ve got details of LEGO sets for 2016 and the new Steelbook Blu-rays as well as some video game and comic book news…
Kicking things off this week is some details about the IMAX screenings of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. We knew that J.J. Abrams had shot several moments of the movie specifically for IMAX, and reports are suggesting that it will be the escape from Jakku where we will see it best. The site goes on to report that “theaters that house a “true” eight story tall IMAX screen will present the film in actual 70MM film reel; presenting the 70MM shot scenes in its full screen glory. There will be two 70MM prints running through the IMAX projector to have the film play in IMAX 3D; rest assured it’s not the gimmick post converted 3D. Check out some comparison shots below…
…Sticking with The Force Awakens, and everyone has been talking about how Jurassic World may be the highest grossing movie of 2015 so far, but that is bound to change with the release of the seventh entry in the saga. However, Bob Iger has been downplaying the expectations of Star Wars box office number (some experts think it will pass $2 billion) saying, “On the Star Wars front, we know there is just incredible interest in this film. We put two teaser trailers out, and the response has just been enormous. Anything that moves gets a lot of attention, and the anticipation is obviously huge. We’ve seen some examples already of Star Wars product going on the marketplace on the consumer products front, including in markets like China, that are very, very encouraging. That said, as enthusiastic as we are for what we know of the film, we have not seen a Star Wars film — an original one — since 2005. And there are markets around the world that are less familiar with Star Wars than, say, the United States, for instance…”
…Our favourite scruffy looking nerve herder is getting his own spin off movie with Star Wars Anthology: Star Wars from The LEGO Movie directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, and the latter half of the duo spoke out about the movie over the weekend. “It is pretty exciting,” he says. “It’s definitely a childhood dream come true for us. It’s a huge pressure. We always try and find something that’s gonna make us… give a fire to our bellies and do a really good job. And this feels like there’s a lot of pressure to not screw this up. So we’ve definitely got that motivation and then the rest of it is about trying to give audiences a fresh experience that doesn’t feel like you’re just trying to check off some checklist of beats that you’re expecting and make something that feels new and exciting for people, but at the same time honoring what was so great about that character…”
…Moving over to the wonderful world of LEGO, and while Star Wars has yet to be confirmed for LEGO Dimensions (though many others have), we have some details for some new sets coming out next year based on The Force Awakens, Star Wars Battlefront and the original saga. Sets will include: 6 new Microfighters sets (2 for The Force Awakens and 4 for Star Wars Rebels), 2 sets for The Force Awakens (“Battle on Takodana” and “The Pirate Transport”), 2 Battle Pack sets based on The Force Awakens (a “Hero” and “Villain”), 2 Battle Pack sets inspired by Star Wars Battlefront, 6 new Construction figures and 4 sets of the Original Trilogy and the Prequel Trilogy (Hoth Attack, Bespin Carbon Freezing Chamber, Droid Escape Pod, and Obi-Wan’s Jedi Interceptor)…
…Speaking of the original saga, and it has been announced this week that Disney are releasing these gorgeous looking Steelbook Blu-Rays. Each film from the Saga is presented with new character packaging allowing fans to choose their favourite or collect all six for a limited time. Characters include: The Phantom Menace – Darth Maul; Attack of the Clones – Yoda; Revenge of the Sith – General Grievous; A New Hope – Darth Vader; The Empire Strikes Back – Imperial Stormtrooper; and Return of the Jedi – Emperor Palpatine. The Blu-Rays will also contain commentary tracks from George Lucas and members of the crew, but there is no word on whether these are new commentaries or ones from previous releases. No word also on whether these Blu-Rays will contain the original cuts of the prequel trilogy, or the George Lucas edits. Check out the covers below…
…Sourcebooks have announced that it is set to release two personalised Star Wars picture books this September in Star Wars Rebels: Battle Plans from Darth Vader and Star Wars: The Force Inside…
…Taking a moment to look at the world of video games and we’ve got a new gameplay trailer for Star Wars Battlefront which shows off an intense 20 player dogfighting featuring X-Wings, A-Wings, TIE Fighters, TIE Interceptors, Slave I and Millennium Falcon. Star Wars Battlefront is released this November for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC…
…We’ve also got a new trailer for the expansion pack for Star Wars: The Old Republic, Knights of the Fallen Empire, which you can watch here…
…Just before we wrap this up, we’ve got some comic book previews for you – including Star Wars: Darth Vader #8 which sees, “Vader‘s obsession is getting dangerous, and what started out as an investigation is turning into high-stakes game of cat-and-mouse that explains the Sith Lord’s relentless pursuit of Luke in The Empire Strikes Back….”
…And here’s a preview for Star Wars: Lando #2: “Before he joined the rebellion, before he ran Cloud City, Lando made his way in the galaxy getting by on some swindles, some swagger, and a smile. Lobot at his side, Lando has a plan to steal a very valuable ship… but has he bitten off more than he can chew?..”
…And lastly – and more importantly – we have a preview of Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Shattered Empire #1, which will bridge the gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens: “Emperor Palpatine’s twenty-year reign of terror came to an abrupt and fiery end in the skies above the forest moon of Endor. A decisive victory for the Rebel Alliance, to be sure, but even with the loss of its leadership, the Empire’s Moffs and regional governors retained their hold on important systems from the Core to the Outer Rim, thanks to the might of the Imperial Starfleet. Now, with a power vacuum atop the Empire, those Moffs will jockey for position and control, and the heroes of the Rebel Alliance will soon discover that a wounded and fractious Empire may be more dangerous than any threat they faced before!” Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Shattered Empire #1 will be released on September 2nd.
That’s all for this week – may the Force be with you.
Luke Owen is the Deputy Editor of Flickering Myth and the host of the Flickering Myth Podcast. You can follow him on Twitter @LukeWritesStuff.
