Tag: celebration orlando (2017)

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Del Rey’s Celebration Orlando schedule, exclusives

Del Rey has announced their Celebration Orlando activities, and they’ll have three panels. The biggest, which will feature what’s “in the works for 2017 and beyond” is Saturday at 1:00 p.m. and will have authors Chuck Wendig, Christie Golden, Timothy Zahn, and Delilah S. Dawson, plus Del Rey’s Elizabeth Schaefer. There’s also five University talks with various authors and a whole boatload of signings.

Their exclusives are a Thrawn pin – which you get when you buy the Celebration edition of Zahn’s new book – and a tote bag which is free with #25 in purchases from any of the Penguin Random House booths. (AKA Del Rey, Random House Audio and DK.)

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This week in Rogue One: Gareth Edwards on the ending, Leia, Vader and more

With the Rogue One home release imminent, director Gareth Edwards has been making the rounds. At SWSW, he talked about how Scariff’s name came about. With /Film, he explains the original ending and what changed, plus. how he got away with killing everyone off.

At Fandango, he discusses why we won’t see cut scenes, Carrie Fisher’s reaction to Leia’s cameo and how Vader’s big moment came to be. He also stopped by Reddit for an AMA.

Meanwhile, Ingvild Deila, the actress who helped recreate young Leia, talks to The Hollywood Reporter.

We’ve also seen a few aditional Rogue One guests named for Celebration, namely Riz Ahmed and Alan Tudyk. (There’s been some speculation that Tudyk might host The Last Jedi panel, as Gwendoline Christie did for Rogue One’s at Celebration Europe.)

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Star Wars Celebration is skipping 2018

There will be no Celebration in 2018, Reed announced today. The next Celebration – after April’s Celebration Orlando – will be in 2019.

That’s the year Episode IX is due, and the Star Wars Lands are expected to open, and so far, U.S. Celebrations have been held in the years saga films are released. A return to Anaheim is probably the best bet – I doubt we’re ever going to see a domestic Celebration not held within a few miles of a Disney theme park ever again.

We don’t have a location yet, but these things have in the past few years been announced at the closing ceremonies of the preceding Celebration, so we may find out April 16. Skipping years in nothing new, either – Celebrations started at 3-year intervals with the prequels and swapped to every other year until Celebration Anaheim in 2015.

Meanwhile, we also got details on Rebels programming and new guests for Orlando.

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Thrawn gets a limited edition cover for Celebration

A special limited edition of Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn will be on sale at Celebration. The hardcover features a full face of Thrawn and printed endpapers, and will come with a not-yet-identified “extra special gift.”

The white cover is the standard edition, while the black cover is a Barnes & Noble exclusive.

The book is out April 11, so if you want the special edition, you’ll have to hold off a few days. Celebration Orlando begins on April 13.

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Rumor: Will Lucasfilm announce new editions of the pre-Special Edition original trilogy at Celebration?

After yesterday’s announcement of a 40th Anniversary panel on the first day of Celebration and a “surprise,”, naturally fan speculation ramped into overdrive. With The Last Jedi panel set for the second day of the con, fans focused on two things: A George Lucas appearance, or the announcement of the long-awaited and perennially rumored “unaltered” Original Trilogy. Today, Making Star Wars is saying that they’ve been hearing things that lead them to believe it will indeed be pre-Special Edition OT.

If the rumor does pan out this time, it will at least be something worth building up for hype. (I can’t really see George showing up, even if this turns up to be false – he seemed uncomfortable at Celebration even when he owned the company. That said, I’ve been wrong before.)

Almost all home releases of the original trilogy since the early ’90s have been built on the restored and digitally tweaked Special Edition versions that were released in 1997. Transfers of the 1993 Laserdisc versions of the film appeared as extras on some 2006 DVDs, but many fans have been hoping for better quality ports for years now. I’m not particularly obsessive about it, and I own those DVDS, but as a member of the VHS generation I’d buy better versions in a heartbeat.

But, as always, Star Wars fans love to speculate, and anything to do with this issue is hotly debated, so keep your pants on. For now, anyway.

In the meantime, here’s fuzzy Youtube version of ‘Lapti Nek’ for the younglings who only know ‘Jedi Rocks.’ It’s ’80s-sleaze-a-riffic!

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Rogue One Blu-ray, digital dates announced; 40th anniversary panel to kick off Celebration

Announced on today’s Star Wars Show are the release dates for Rogue One on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD. Like The Force Awakens, it’ll launch on Digital HD a week before (March 24) the Blu-ray and DVD options (April 4.) This also gets it’s own promo:


The other big news is that a 40th Anniversary tribute panel will kick off Celebration Orlando. Hosted by Warwick Davis and featuring Kathleen Kennedy and “the saga’s brightest stars.” They’re also laying it on a bit heavy about “surprises,” so keep that in mind.

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Celebration’s The Last Jedi panel will be Friday, April 14

To the surprise of no one, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and director Rian Johnson will be on a Celebration Orlando panel on Friday, April 14. The Last Jedi panel is expected debut the film’s first trailer, or at the very least a behind-the-scenes feature, as the con is expected to launch the movie’s first wave of publicity. Expect some other “special guests” to appear as well.

For the past few Celebrations, the first big movie panel has featured the upcoming release, while a second on Sunday focuses on the other upcoming films.

The new Star Wars Show also features more Rogue One behind-the-scenes and a visit to Sideshow.


UPDATE: Johnson took the occasion to post a new behind-the-scenes shot on Tumblr:

http://rcjohnso.tumblr.com/post/157290828820/were-coming-to-orlando-for-a-star

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There’s a memorial benefit gala for Carrie Fisher being held during Celebration Orlando!

Going to Celebration in Orlando? Looking for a Thursday night event? Check out Drowning in Moonlight, a memorial benefit gala for Carrie Fisher and benefiting The Midnight Misson. It’s hosted by Tosche Station and the Star Wars Podcast Alliance.

Tickets start at $40 and are on sale now. The gala is being held at the Rosen Centre Hotel, which is right next door to the Orange County Convention Center.