I'd barely clicked post on my hopes for SDCC last night when 2 of them happened before the conventions even started!
Harrison Ford as Han Solo with Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Last night StarWars.com officially announced that Christopher Miller and Phil Lord (The Lego Movie) will direct the second Star Wars Anthology movie - Han Solo! Lawrence Kasdan (co-writer The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens) and Jon Kasdan are writing the script which will focus on how the young Han Solo "became the smuggler, thief, and scoundrel whom Luke Skywalker and Obi-wan Kenobi first encountered in the cantina at Mos Eisley".
As Lucasfilm's Kathleen Kennedy rightly observes "It's not just any filmmaker who can tell the story of such a beloved icon like Han Solo". The creative team is extremely strong and I'm sure they will do Han's story justice. Ultimately though, this film will rest on the shoulders of whoever is brave enough to step into Harrison Ford's shoes and take on such an iconic role. I wish whoever that ends up being the best of luck! Personally I'm hoping this film is set at least a decade before A New Hope to make the re-casting a little easier for fans and creative alike.
I have to say I didn't see this announcement coming. With the reports that there won't be a new trailer for The Force Awakens at SDCC, the announcement of the second Anthology seemed like one of the big things they could do at the panel. To announce it now really makes me excited to think about what Lucasfilm must have up their sleeve for Friday's panel!!
Elodie Yung, photo by Getty Images
Marvel also started their pre-con announcements last night, confirming that Elodie Yung is joining the second season of Marvel and Netflix's Daredevil as Elektra!! I loved the first series and was hoping to see Elektra in season 2 so I'm loving this announcement! I've not seen Elodie Yung in anything but she certainly looks the part!
1/6 Scale Kevin Eastman TMNT by ThreeZero
And TMNT co-creator took to Facebook to share some images of his designs for ThreeZero's upcoming 1/6 scale Ninja Turtles figures. ThreeZero did excellent work on the movie figures even though I wasn't a big fan of the designs so I'm excited to see how these look when they come out. I still prefer the classic look Mondo is doing but if the price is right then these will definitely be tempting!
Kevin Eastman's Leonardo
Kevin Eastman's Raphael
Kevin Eastman's Michelangelo
Kevin Eastman's Donatello
And it's still six hours until the doors open for Preview Night! This is going to be one awesome Comic Con!
What a great weekend! Free Comic Book Day on Saturday and Star Wars Day on Bank Holiday Monday!
I must admit I was expecting something from The Force Awakens to drop today but until they revealed the cover last night I definitely wasn't expecting a full Vanity Fair photo shoot by Annie Leibovitz!
To be honest I am slightly disappointed. I was really hoping for them to give us our first real look at Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. Part of this is purely because Luke is my favourite character and the suspense is killing me, but the other part is purely pragmatic. September 4th has been announced as "Force Friday" when all of The Force Awakens merchandise will arrive in stores. Four months from today everything from action figures to LEGO, t-shirts to kitchen utensils, and even Del Rey's prequel novel Aftermath will be in our stores. And it's already been strongly hinted that we'll be seeing the first of Hasbro's The Force Awakens products revealed at this summer's San Diego Comic Con which is only a little over 2 months away (and before Ant-Man which is probably the most likely film for the next trailer). I really don't want my first look at Episode VII's Luke Skywalker to be an action figure or merchandising artwork and May the 4th seemed, to me, like the best time to make that reveal. That said, I trust the team behind this film, they obviously have a plan in place and from the massive amount of hype this film is generating it's clearly working. I'm sure they'll make the Luke and Leia reveal when the time is right. As Yoda would say, I must have patience.
And what was revealed is pretty awesome! There's a few potential spoilers, given all of this has been officially released I'm guessing it's pretty safe but still, if you're trying to avoid everything then best stop reading now.
John Boyega, Daisy Ridely, Peter Mayhew and Harrison Ford with BB-8, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
How amazing is that cover? Han and Chewie are home in the Falcon along with new heroes Rey and Finn and the little droid I'm almost certain is going to steal the show, BB-8. It's so great to see Han and Chewie again this soon after the teaser and this image offers us a slightly clearer look at Han Solo's new outfit (and Chewie who doesn't seem to have aged a day!)
The first photo confirms what has long been suspected - Adam Driver is the one behind Kylo Ren's fearsome mask.
Adam Driver as Kylo Ren along with Snowtroopers of The First Order, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
For some reason I'm surprised his face is normal under that mask. I don't know why but I'd imagined he'd be scarred or disfigured in some way under the hood. Snowtroopers look pretty cool too. The Vanity Fairarticle says that The First Order's secret base is in the frozen plains of the planet pictured above. That definitely seems to match up with the image in the last teaser with all the Stormtroopers in front of the red First Order banner with snowy mountains in the background.
The article also reveals that Lupita Nyong'o will be playing the pirate Maz Kanata (who will be a CGI character) who has a castle filled with the classic assortment of scum and villainy;
Lupita Nyong'o in the motion capture outfit required to create Maz Kanata, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
The Scum and Villainy of Maz Katana's Castle, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
Of course, Star Wars wouldn't be Star Wars without heroes and Vanity Fair offers up a new look at The Force Awakens' Rey and Poe Dameron.
Daisy Ridley as Rey with Director J. J. Abrams, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
Oscaar Isaac as Poe Dameron, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
Finally, a third article brought one last reveal. Confirming that it's Game of Thrones' Gwendoline Christie in the awesome looking chrome Stormtrooper armour. And that she has a name. Captain Phasma.
Gwendoline Christie as Captain Phasma, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
And if that's not enough there's a behind the scenes video as well;
And if that's still not enough then Vanity Fair have promised another character portrait will be sent out tomorrow to everyone that signs up to their newsletter by 8pm EST today. Originally I thought this would be the image of Captain Phasma as she wasn't included in the initial photo set and a leaked scan of the magazine revealed the image before the third article was posted. With that picture now revealed I'm not sure who we can expect to see tomorrow. Maybe a new image of John Boyega's Finn or a full body shot of Han Solo and Chewbacca? I know who I'm hoping for but I'm not expecting that anymore!
Pretty awesome Star Wars Day, huh?
John Williams, Kathleen Kennedy, Lawrence Kasdan and J. J. Abrams, Photo by Annie Leibovitz
Ok, I was so hyped in the build up to this. It had been
suspected for a while that the next trailer for The Force Awakens might be shown at Star Wars Celebration but with the announcement of the live
stream cinema events and then the live stream online it was all but confirmed.
I feel sorry for anyone that had to put up with me at work last Thursday
because I was totally hyper. I loved the first teaser but I was so ready
for more! The panel with JJ
Abrams and Kathleen Kennedy was a great way to build the anticipation, then
came R2 and BB-8 (I love BB-8!!), our new trio of leads and finally the
original cast. I wish I could have been there, even on the live stream
you could feel the energy in the room. It must have been an incredible
feeling. Then came the moment
everyone had been waiting for;
WOW! I mean I was just blown away. It showed less than I expected (I was honestly expecting to see a fuller reveal of Luke and Leia) yet more at the same time. From the moment Luke's narration began "The Force is strong in my family..." I had goose bumps. When it was over it felt like I'd just been reunited with old friends. I felt like a kid again, who'd just walked out of A New Hope in 1997 and couldn't wait to get his own lightsaber. And the best part of not being at Celebration was that I could re-watch it again and again straight away. And I did. A lot!
Ok, before I analyse the trailer a bit here's the obligatory spoiler policy. THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS. Nada, zip! I don't know, I don't want to know and I don't want to spoil anything for those who also don't want to know. Unlike the Prequel Trilogy we have absolutely no idea where the story is going and I can't wait to be taken on that journey later this year. Anything I post here is my own speculation based on what's officially been revealed in the teasers and at Celebration.
The teaser opens with an incredible sweeping shot of a distant speeder on the desert planet of Jakku. Almost instantly the sight of a downed X-Wing in the foreground grabs your attention but as the camera continues to pan across the desert you suddenly realise that's not a mountain or dune in the background. It's a crashed Star Destroyer! It's a stunning visual that raises a very interesting question. What the heck happened here?!
Thanks to Star Wars celebration and the upcoming DLC for Battlefront we know that the Battle of Jakku took place not long after Return of the Jedi which begs the question, what could have happened so soon after Endor that the repercussions are still being felt at the time of The Force Awakens? Could this be the moment when the Empire becomes The First Order and the Rebel Alliance becomes the Resistance?
Luke Skywalker?
"The Force is strong in my family..." This was my favourite part of the trailer. I love Han and Chewie, but Luke Skywalker was one of my childhood heroes and just hearing his voice again gave me chills. And the way it was done was simply perfect. Teasing glimpses at the charred remains of Darth Vader's helmet, a robed figure implied to be Luke Skywalker and someone handing a female figure, implied to be Leia, Luke's first lightsaber before he tells someone unseen "you have that power too."
This trailer is like the perfect teaser because it just raises so many questions!
Who recovered Vader's helmet from Endor and why?
Is that Luke Skywalker? If so where is he and is he alone? Both teasers have shown us Kylo Ren with his extremely distinct lightsaber blazing but there's been a distinct lack of Jedi. Luke was told to pass on what he had learned but it certainly doesn't look like he's rebuilt the Jedi Order by the time of The Force Awakens. Has he even trained Leia?
Luke's old lightsaber?! Last time we saw this it was lost on Bespin. This wouldn't be the first time it's shown up again (it came back in the classic Thrawn Trilogy in the old Legends canon as well) but to see it again thirty years after it was lost certainly makes me wonder how it fits into the story. We know Rey's a scavenger and Jakku appears to be something of a junk world so maybe that's the connection, but if so then how did it end up there? Plus that doesn't look like Rey's hand passing the lightsaber to Leia. And there's always the possibility that it's not been lost for 30 years...
"You have that power too." Though we don't see who he's talking to, the implication here is that Luke has found an apprentice. Is it Rey? Finn? Maybe Poe? Heck, it could be someone else entirely but I've waited a long time to see Jedi Master Luke Skywalker so I can't wait to see how this plays out and for Luke to finally pass on the knowledge of the Jedi.
The rest of the teaser has a faster pace as we get quick action shots of our new heroes and villain. Poe Dameron flying the new style X-Wing over water. Kylo Ren in action as everything around him burns. Rey, Finn and BB-8 running from an attacking TIE Fighter. BB-8 hiding on what looks like the Millennium Falcon. Rey offering Finn her hand to help him up, presumably their first meeting. But there's a few shots that stand out. The first is this one;
The First Order
The new Stormtroopers look great, but what really caught my interest was the figure in black, standing in the centre under the banner. Could this be the ruler of The First Order? A new Emperor? It certainly doesn't look like Kylo Ren but then we've never seen Ren without his mask on and the figure is too far away to make anything out.
There's a quick shot of what appears to be a TIE Fighter blasting the inside of a Star Destroyer hanger bay followed by Finn removing a blood stained helmet. We know Finn is a Stormtrooper (or at least John Boyega implied he was at Celebration but he could have been messing with us) and that The First Order is hunting him so it's reasonable to assume he's defected. But what has caused him to defect? What's he looking at when he removes that bloodied helmet? And is that him in the TIE Fighter, shooting his way out of the hanger?
Who is this awesome looking Stormtrooper?
The trailer closes with some fantastic footage of the Millennium Falcon being chased by a TIE Fighter into the wreckage of the downed Star Destroyer. Then the screen goes black and we hear an unmistakable voice say "Chewie". As we're given our first real look at two of the heroes of the Original Trilogy, Han delivers his already iconic line "we're home."
"Chewie, we're home."
Which of course begs the question, what's Han referring to as home? It looks like they're on the Millennium Falcon. But if Han hasn't been Captain of the Falcon for the last 30 years then who has?
The teaser trailer did a fantastic job of building up excitement for the film without giving anything away. In fact it only served to raise even more questions that the first teaser from last year. It's an exciting time to be a Star Wars fan and I can't wait to see what the future holds!
