The Week in Star Wars returns with Adam Driver talking Episode VIII, a load of new posters for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story as well as a load of merch, a returning character for Star Wars Rebels, a beating by Fifty Shades of Grey and more…
We’ll kick things off this week by looking at a whole batch of new international posters for Gareth Edward’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, many of which feature Darth Vader himself. Check all nine posters out here, and a brand new international poster here, which sees Felicity Jones’ Jyn Erso standing tall as the Death Star looms in the background…
…Speaking of merch, and Hasbro released images from their Rogue One line in anticipation of September 30th’s Force Friday. You can check out a huge batch of toys (including a Rapid Nerf Firing Imperial AT-ACT) here, and Wave 2 figures here. Mechanoid also unveiled their t-shirt line [which you can see here] and LEGO released a promo for its upcoming Imperial Assault Hovertank set [which you can watch here]. Meanwhile, Lucasfilm has been releasing a series of stop-motion animated shorts using the film’s toy line – be sure to check out part one, part two and part three of ‘Go Rogue’..
…Lastly on Rogue One and it looks like the re-shoots have caused a reshuffle in the composing department, as Michael Giacchino (Up, The Incredibles, and loads of other Pixar films) has replaced Alexandre Desplat, who can no longer fit the work into his schedule…
…Looking ahead to Star Wars: Episode VIII, and Adam Driver has been talking about the differences in tone to The Force Awakens – comparing the film to Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back. “It’s similar to how The Empire Strikes Back has a different tone,” he said. “For that people always go ‘oooh, it’s dark’ but I don’t know that it necessarily is. It’s just different in tone in a way that I think is great and necessary but also very clear. [Johnson] trusts [that] his audience is ready for nuance and ambiguity. He’s not dumbing anything down for someone and that’s really fun to play”. You can read more from that interview here…
…It was reported last month that ABC were exploring the idea of doing a Star Wars TV series, but it looks like there won’t be one any time soon. “Star Wars plans rest in the hands of [Walt Disney Studios chairman] Alan Horn and [Lucasfilm president] Kathy Kennedy,” ABC President Ben Sherwood told THR. “Somewhere we hope in a galaxy not too far away there will be a television show that will air on one of our networks. But I wouldn’t get anybody’s hopes up too high. They have a lot of movies to make between now and then…”
…You may recall that the trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens smashed records when it knocked up 112 million plays on YouTube in 24-hours. Well, that record has been whipped – by Fifty Shades Darker. Yep. The trailer [which you can watch here], earned 114 million plays. Perhaps the trailer for Star Wars: Episode VIII can dethrone it when its released…
…Speaking of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and you can watch a VFX reel showcasing ILM’s digital effects work here…
…We’ve already seen a few characters from Star Wars: The Clone Wars making their way into Star Wars Rebels – including Ahsoka Tano, Captain Rex and Hondo Ohnaka – and now we can add another name to that list, with Katee Sackhoff revealing at the Oz Comic-Con in Sydney that she’ll be reprising the role of Bo-Katan Kryze in the third season of the animated series…
…A new trailer was released for the third season of Star Wars Rebels along with episode titles, and you can take a look at two clips from the premiere episode ‘Steps Into Shadow’ here and here, as well as a batch of images from the episode here. Disney XD has also released official character descriptions for Ezra Bridger, his Dark Side ‘Master’ Maul, and the debuting fan-favourite EU character Grand Admiral Thrawn, which you can see here…
…Disney announced the upcoming Blu-ray and DVD release of LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures – Complete Season One, which is set to arrive on December 6th. Check out the cover art, synopsis and details of the special features here…
…EA has released a gameplay trailer for the latest expansion for Star Wars Battlefront, which invites players to take on the Empire’s ultimate weapon the Death Star, and includes give news maps (on ground and in space), along with new weapons, Star Cards, and two new playable heroes in Chewbacca and Bossk. Check out the gameplay trailer here…
…And finally, here are your comic book previews for the week. First up is Star Wars: The Force Awakens #4: Rey, Finn, Han and Chewie have reached Maz Kanata’s castle… …but the Force is calling Rey to Luke’s lightsaber! Meanwhile, our heroes have been discovered! The First Order strikes! And here’s a first-look at Star Wars: Darth Vader #25: It has all built to this! Vader’s trials against Cylo’s creations! His machinations against the Emperor! His covert missions with Doctor Aphra and her murderous droids. It all comes to a head in this cataclysmic final chapter. Plus, this oversized issue also contains a thrilling new tale from Kieron Gillen and artist Max Fiumara. Who lives? Who dies? The answers may surprise you!
That’s all for this week – may the Force be with you.
Luke Owen is the Deputy Editor of Flickering Myth and the co-host of The Flickering Myth Podcast and Scooperhero News. You can follow him on Twitter @ThisisLukeOwen and read his weekly feature The Week in Star Wars.
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Originally published September 18, 2016. Updated November 30, 2022.
