Tag: jj abrams

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Vanity Fair’s The Force Awakens photoshoot is up

poe

And now, the actual Vanity Fair photoshoot is up – with one more photo set to go out in their email newsletter. We do get a name for Lupita Nyong’o’s CGI character: Maz Kanata, a pirate who has a castle populated with a variety of riffraff. We also get a nice shot of Oscar Isaac and his X-Wing, Rey (and J.J. Abrams) on Jakku and Abrams with Kathleen Kennedy, John Williams and Lawrence Kasdan.

UPDATE: And the last photo has been spotted. Gwendoline Christie is confirmed as Captain Phasma, the chrome stormtrooper. You can read most of the article at VF as well, plus the prequel spreads are back up!

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Yes, we saw a new trailer for The Force Awakens!


J.J. Abrams and Kathleen Kennedy’s “special guests” included the new trio – Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Oscar Isaac – who confirmed some of what we’d already heard and/or guessed about their characters. We also got to see the (real!) BB-8 and Artoo, plus their makers, and of course Anthony Daniels, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill and Peter Mayhew also showed up. I’ll be back later with more, but for now just keep an eye on @clubjade, where I’ve been far more active than on the blog. (Sorry!)

In the meantime, you can backwatch the panel yourself!

And another video that StarWars.com dropped on us today:


Here’s just the BB-8 portion of the livestream:

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Celebration Anaheim: Store exclusives, line queue details, and the floor plan

It’s the final Friday before Celebration, and the news is flowing.

First up, we have a look at what will be in the official Celebration store. Today we got the second batch, and I guess it’s just as well I forgot to blog the first part the other day, right? (Though at least I remembered the apparel.) My personal highlights are above, but there’s lots for everyone. And yes, the Death Star soccer ball from last Celebration Europe IS BACK!

We also have the details of how queuing up for Thursday’s big J.J. Abrams/Kathleen Kennedy panel will work. The indoor queue will open up at 6:00 p.m. Wednesday, with wristbands being handed out at 6:00 am Thursday… Wristbands for all the rooms, not just the Celebration Stage. So even if you don’t mind a simulcast, plan to get up early.

And finally, the floor plan, in PDF form or see the gallery below.

Level 1
Exhibit hall
Level 2
Level 3
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Is Celebration’s opening panel going to be broadcast worldwide?

abrams-kennedyAccording to the official French Star Wars website (via Dork Side of the Force,) the opening panel with J.J. Abrams and Kathleen Kennedy at Celebration Anaheim is called Rise of the Force, and it’ll be simulcast worldwide at 35 theaters in 23 countries. The likewise official @StarWarsUK account posted about a showing at London’s Leicester Square, but as of yet there’s nothing on StarWars.com or from @StarWars.

A worldwide broadcast – even if only at 35 locations – does hint we’re going to get something big. Naturally, everyone is expecting a new trailer – and the rumors about it being attached to The Avengers: Age of Ultron were making the rounds again today, something backed up by a now-deleted tweet from the habitual butterfingers at @RegalMovies.

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Rumor: Who’s the frontrunner to direct Episode IX?

starwars-jjabramsAccording to (deep breath) Latino Review, J.J. Abrams may return to direct the final film of the new trilogy. Making Star Wars has a source saying the same thing.

There are also rumblings out and about that Francis Lawrence, who directed the last three Hunger Games movies, is in the running as well.

We’ve previously heard that Episode VIII director Rian Johnson would also script and perhaps direct the third installment as well, but this far out it’s hard to say in any case.

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Catching up with The Force Awakens: Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson (almost) talk Star Wars

Oscar Isaac and Domhnall Gleeson have been making the rounds at SXSW for that other sci-fi film they’re in, Ex Machina, and basically being adorable dorks.

At MTV, Gleeson “almost has a stroke” when the interviewer says ‘Poe Dameron,’ AND we learn how to pronounce ‘Domhnall,’ which will certainly come in handy. With E!, they talk about stepping onto set for the first time.

→ One Episode VII crew worker is putting up his special cast and crew gear to help raise funds for his daughter, Elise, who has been diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. Care for Elise donations are accepted through Go Fund Me, and anyone who donates has a chance to win the gear.

→ Making Star Wars has a report on The Force Awakens editorial process, which is actually pretty safe for the spoiler-free among us. Just don’t click anywhere else, like their attempt at decoding the teaser shot-for-shot or this speculative piece on Poe Dameron’s X-wing.

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Today in The Force Awakens: A young who?

spoilers-swirl-bbwarwickGiven that Making Star Wars has heard about a flashback sequence, of course there’s an actor who may be playing a younger version of one of our alumni. They also have some drawings based on their earlier costume descriptions for Leia and Han.

For the spoiler-free, there’s J.J. Abrams saying there’s “an abundance of riches” from the film that they’re making “as good as it could be.” So basically, don’t expect much before Celebration, which, yeah.

And, back to spoilers, Full of Sith’s Bobby Roberts has a new Rumor Control episode.