Quick, what film are you most excited for in 2015?
The correct answer is Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens, and if you answered any differently, you may be browsing the wrong site. Despite the lackluster prequels, the latest entry in the space opera series provides long-term fans with a new hope for the franchise, a hope cemented in an amazing teaser trailer.
Since The Force Awakens is a J.J. Abrams film, the plot is still shrouded in secrecy. Since the film doesn’t hit theaters until December of this year, we’re whiling away the months between by looking at everything we know so far. Let’s get into it.
- The Cast – A lot of familiar faces, both from other films and from the original trilogy. Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford will return as Luke, Leia and Han Solo respectively, while Peter Mayhew, Kenny Baker and Anthony Daniels will reprise their roles as non-human heroes Chewbacca, R2D2 and C-3PO. New additions to the universe include John Boyega (Attack the Block), Oscar Isaac (A Most Violent Year), Warwick Davis (Leprechaun), Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave), Andy Serkis (Rise of the Planet of the Apes), Domhnall Gleeson (About Time), and Max von Sydow (Minority Report).
- The Crew – There’s a few recognizable names behind the scenes of The Force Awakens as well—namely director J.J. Abrams, who also co-wrote the script with Lawrence Kasdan (of Episode V and VI fame).
- A Few of the Actors’ Roles – obviously we know who the Star Wars veterans are playing, but the teaser trailer gave some clear hints concerning the other characters we can expect to meet. Oscar Isaac looks to be playing a rebel X-wing pilot named Poe Dameron and John Boyega a stormtrooper who, for whatever reason, loses his fellow troopers and his helmet on Tattooine. Daisy Ridley is likely a Tattooine local and a rebel, judging from her getup in the trailer, and Max von Sydow is rumored to be the film’s chief antagonist. Andy Serkis narrates the opening line of the trailer –“There’s been an awakening. Have you felt it?”—so take that for what it’s worth.
- The Timeline – the film picks up 30 years after the Battle of Endor that closed Return of the Jedi.
- Lots and Lots of Plot Rumor – It’s difficult to sift through all the speculation and rumors for cold, hard facts about the plot. Badass Digest vaguely details a basic, slightly spoil-rific rundown of the plot as it stands right now: Luke Skywalker’s severed hand and lightsaber land on a desert planet, where it’s discovered by Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, an ex-stormtrooper looking to change his path in life. They decide to return the arm to its proper owner, leading them to Han Solo and Chewbacca, who confess they haven’t seen Luke Skywalker since the events of Return of the Jedi. So begins a quest to find the self-exiled Jedi master. Further details revealed by Movie Pilot suggest Boyega is the new Skywalker and Skywalker himself will take on a Yoda-esque role.
- The Ball Droid and the Three-Pronged Lightsaber – these are things that happened in the trailer, lest you forgot.
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