Composer John Williams has seen an early cut of The Rise of Skywalker, likes it “very much” and has written about 25 minutes of the score, he tells The Times. The original article is behind a paywall, but head to /Film for the relevant quote.
Fans without hotel reservations will be able to make reservations for Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland on May 2. The reservations are free, but you will need a park ticket or be a passholder to get one. The system only applies in California – when the Florida version is up in August it’ll be open to all immediately. Speaking of Disney World, here’s some rumored name and theming details for the Star Wars hotel that’s still in the planning stages.
There was… Sort of? A reveal at the Lucasfilm Publishing: Writer’s Roundtable panel Monday morning at Celebration: Claudia Gray, Justina Ireland, Daniel José Older, Charles Soule and Cavan Scott are all working on something called “Project Luminous” for 2020.
We know it’s inspired by the quote “The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It’s an energy field created by all living things.”
Other than that, they won’t tell us anything. Not even a format. We do know the writers all went to Skywalker Ranch and watched A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. They’re having fun. That’s it! That’s literally it.
(Of course you heard.) In addition to “The Siege of Mandalore,” we’re also seeing 1313 and Maul (mo-capped by Ray Park and with Solo design inspirations.)
What did we learn from today’s Galaxy’s Edge panel here at Celebration Chicago that we didn’t already hear in February?
Coke.
Yeah, okay, there was some stuff about Yoda (Frank Oz!), the Modal Nodes finally getting a second song, Millennium Falcon damage and winning a trip to the park, but mostly?
There have been two book-based publishing panels here at Celebration so far, and luckily I managed to attend both! They’ve been low on major news, but they did still contain a few revelations about upcoming fiction.
The first, Lucasfilm Publishing, was Friday, not long after The Rise of Skywalker panel, which is pretty much why you’re getting this post on Saturday. (Fan! Blogging!) We did get a cover reveal for Zoraida Córdova’s Galaxy’s Edge YA novel, A Crash of Fate, which was compared to Lost Stars and features two old friends who reconnect.
Delilah Dawson confirmed that Cardinal will be joining Vi Moradi in her Galaxy’s Edge novel, Black Spire. It will have a very different feel from Phasma – she name-dropped the sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine as an inspiration at both panels.
Meanwhile, Christian Blauvelt’s Be More Yoda and Be More Vader are getting two new companion volumes in the fall: Be More Leia and Be More Lando. And Jeffrey Brown returns to the GFFA with Rey and Pals. Check StarWars.com for some of the highlights (and decent images!), and my Twitter thread has a few other bits. (Yes, there will be a Journey to Episode IX. No other details, but it will happen.)
The second panel was Del Rey Behind the Scenes, and it featured Claudia Gray, Delilah S. Dawson, Alexander Freed, Tim Zahn and Cavan Scott with Marc Thompson moderating.
We did learn a few things about Gray’s Master & Apprentice and Scott’s audio drama Dooku: Jedi Lost. Scott was such a fan of a new character in M&A, Rael Averross – Dooku’s previous padawan and another mentor to Qui-Gon Jinn – that he became a big part of Jedi Lost.
As for Thrawn: Treason, we got a few more details – Thrawn gets drawn into the power games of Tarkin and Orson Krennic and “it doesn’t end how anyone expects.” Eli Vanto returns, as does Admiral Ar’alani and the Grysk.
There will be an author roundtable here on Monday, which seems like it will be the hotbed for announcements. I plan to attend that but wasn’t able to get a panel reservation, so… We’ll see. (Ahh, Reed.)
We’re excited to reveal the cover of @ADaniels3PO’s new book, I AM C-3PO: The Inside Story. Discover the incredible untold story of one of #StarWars most iconic characters, C-3PO, told by the man who knows him best. Pre-order your copy: https://t.co/9udtyA8JTvpic.twitter.com/pNYclroBzY
Everything is geared up towards Celebration right now – including me, which is why this post is a day later than usual. But there’s still two brand new comics and a reprint coming on Wednesday, April 10.
Meanwhile, James’ piece on photographing cosplayers still holds up as the best of our series. (They’re all over here, but be warned: A few were updated in 2015 and the general con stuff still holds true, but some of them are even older and some of the convention specifics no longer apply.)
Her Universe is launching a capsule collection for Celebration Chicago called “Sisters of the Force,” featuring items inspired by several Star Wars women. (And they’re bringing back one of their originals, the “Padmé nouveau” tee.) Ashley Eckstein talks to StarWars.com about the inspiration behind each piece, or check out the gallery under the cut.
