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Rumor: The most dangerous man in the Universe? Matt Smith is coming for Episode IX

And another big geek name reportedly joins Episode IX… Matt Smith (The Crown, Doctor Who in a “key role,” Variety reports.

Smith is best known as the Eleventh Doctor on Doctor Who from 2010-2013, while he most recently received an Emmy nomination for playing Prince Phillip in Netflix’s The Crown.

If this pans out, he’ll be the third Doctor to have a Star Wars role in recent years, though the first in a film. His Who predecessor, 10th Doctor David Tennant, voiced Jedi training droid Huyang in The Clone Wars, while 4th Doctor Tom Baker voiced the pivotal role of Bendu in S3 of Rebels. With two of the three trilogies filmed in the U.K., there’s a wealth of other crossovers between the two franchises, including a weird stint with Peter Cushing in the 60s. Other Who alumni to have appeared in Star Wars include Rogue One’s Felicity Jones, IX’s Richard E. Grant and Naomi Ackie. And going the other way around, Warwick Davis guest-starred in a 2013 episode during Smith’s tenure.

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Disney’s streaming service is (not) called “Disney Play”

In Variety’s cover story on Hollywood, Netflix and the other direct-to-consumer platforms being developed, Disney CEO Bob Iger reveals that the company’s streaming service will be called “Disney Play.” THR has since gone back and changed the quote to be “a Disney play” – so it’s likely not the service’s name after all. Back to Disneyflix!

Iger says the service is the company’s “biggest priority” for 2019, and the article explores the costs, stakes and other business concerns for not just Disney, but all the other companies in the game.

One estimate says Disney would need 40 million subscribers to break even if they went with a price of $6 a month. (No pricing has been officially announced yet, but Iger has previously said that the Disney service will be cheaper than Netflix, which runs $8-14.)

The Disney service, expected to launch in 2019, will be home to a new chunk of The Clone Wars and at least one brand-new live-action Star Wars show from Jon Favreau. Older episodes of TCW (currently on Netflix) are probably a good bet, and I have no doubt that Rebels (which has never streamed outside the Disney ecosystem) and the upcoming Resistance will be found there as well. One thing the new service won’t have is the older Star Wars films – and it might only get new ones like Episode IX for a limited time (ala Rogue One and The Last Jedi on Netflix), as there’s a broadcast deal with Turner that runs through 2024.

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Dominic Monaghan joins the Star Wars

Deadline reports that Dominic Monaghan (Lost, Lord of the Rings) has snagged a role in Episode IX. Monaghan himself seemingly confirms: “The galaxy far far away has had almost as much influence as the one I live in, so I am delighted to be involved,” he said.

Yesterday, he posted this:

Seems apropos @starwars @ragandbone #becurious

A post shared by Dominic Monaghan (@dom_monaghan_) on

Monaghan was among the reams of actors who expressed an interest back when The Force Awakens was gearing up.

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Episode IX filming spotted; Fun with Finn and Poe?

We’ve seen the Falcon now, but how about Finn, Poe and Chewbacca? The Sun has some spy pics of John Boyega, Oscar Isaac and Joonas Suotamo filming with some other actors/extras “just a few miles outside of London.” Unlike yesterday’s spotting, this one could be considered actually spoilery, so don’t click through if that sort of thing matters to you.

Of course, this being the Sun, there’s also some blathering about Ewan McGregor, who is probably not in this one. (Well, maybe. It’s a big maybe.)

Some observations below the cut.

Continue reading “Episode IX filming spotted; Fun with Finn and Poe?”

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More Solo novelization excerpts; Han gets a deep dive

There’s a set of three new short Solo novelization excerpts on StarWars.com today filling in-between scenes from the film – one with Qi’ra and Lady Proxima, one with L3-37 and the Millennium Falcon, and one with Enfys Nest and some other familiar characters. Mur Lafferty’s Solo: A Star Wars Story: Expanded Edition will be out on September 4.

Continue reading “More Solo novelization excerpts; Han gets a deep dive”

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Rumor: Episode IX will finish filming by February

A report from Geeks Worldwide/Omega Underground says that filming on J.J. Abrams’ Episode IX is expected to complete filming by February. The movie began shooting August 1.

Why should the average fan care? After all, the movie still won’t be out until December 2019. But the end of filming is sometimes used as a reason for major announcements… Like titles, as was the case for Solo and The Force Awakens.

It’s not a hard and fast rule: The Last Jedi wrapped principal photography in July and didn’t announce the title until January, although we know now that Rian Johnson had it very early on. And Rogue One had the title before it began filming. But it’s possible – 50/50 – we’ll learn the IX title in February.

Omega Underground hasn’t originated many rumors, but they were the first to report that Paul Inglis was hired as the IX art director

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Kelly Marie Tran refuses to be marginalized

Kelly Marie Tran speaking out for the first time since she deleted all her posts on Instagram earlier this year, in an essay for The New York Times. The move was widely believed to be about the harassment she’s received, something she confirms here, but it’s also part of a larger picture, part of growing up “as a person of color in a white-dominated world.”

I won’t quote much more, as the piece needs to be read in its entirety. I know, it’s the internet, we don’t click links anymore, it’s the NYT and they have a paywall. Open up a different browser. Read it on another computer/device. But it’s important to read it.

Harassment is never okay. Harassing someone over their race, their gender, or because you don’t find them attractive is not the exception. Saying mean things about someone because you didn’t like a movie isn’t either. I don’t know why people seem to need a reminder that just because you can be an ass on the internet doesn’t mean you should. And just because you haven’t experienced something doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened to someone else.

Just read it, okay?

Here’s a quick lesson in how to properly pronounce her real name, Loan: