In less than a week, audiences around the globe will be settled into theater seats to enjoy what’s being touted as “the final chapter in the Skywalker saga.”
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will have its red carpet premiere on Monday, Dec. 16, with press screenings set for Tuesday. Public previews open Thursday night, with Friday marking the official opening date. Indeed, we’ve entered the home stretch in what is now the third “end” for the Saga following Return of the Jedi (1983) and Revenge of the Sith (2005), but will it really mark the end for the episodic lineage? Only time will tell, but as we head into hyperspace (hard emphasis on the HYPE), the sinister voice of Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious from the recent TV spots does feel like it speaks the truth as we prepare to “let the final battle begin.”
An Epic Nine-Film Fan Trailer
Fan edits and Star Wars go together like Tusken Raiders and Banthas. Ahead of The Rise of Skywalker, it’s certainly no surprise that many have thrown their hats into the ring with a host of different Saga-spanning trailer cuts, but perhaps the best comes from Dylan Trost on YouTube. His Star Wars Trailer 3.0 is an epic piece that explores the running themes of the entire series from 1977-2019.
Watch ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ Red Carpet
Fans of the saga can visit the Star Wars YouTube channel or the official site at 5:30 p.m. PT on Monday for exclusive red carpet coverage from the world premiere in Los Angeles. Following the tradition of recent Star Wars premieres, hosts Andi Gutierrez and Anthony Carboni of The Star Wars Show will chat with the cast and crew as the journey of a generation comes to a close.
As always, fans can participate from home with text and video submissions being accepted for the Star Wars Fan Cam. Follow #SWSRedCarpet and #TheRiseofSkywalker on twitter for more details and to take part.
Porsche x Star Wars Spawns a Starship
Automotive collaborations are nothing new to Star Wars, dating back to some sweet conversion vans that appeared following the release of the original film back in 1977. In recent years, Nissan has been a regular collaborator, most notably with a Rogue One-inspired Rogue. The designers from Mattel’s Hot Wheels team keep the “what if?” scenarios flowing, and we certainly can’t forget the famous Volkswagen commercial in which a young Darth Vader used the Force on his parent’s ride. What we haven’t seen until now is a reverse collaboration in which an automaker brings its design elements into a galaxy far, far away as an actual Starship. That’s where Porsche comes in.
“The worldwide appeal of the Star Wars and Porsche brands is shaped decisively by their iconic designs,” says Doug Chiang, vice president and executive creative director of Lucasfilm who’s responsible for overseeing all designs for the Star Wars franchise. “We are bringing together two worlds with this project: The exotic film design of a galaxy far, far away and the precision work that goes into developing emotive Porsche sports cars. This collaboration promises to produce an innovative design that will blend the best of both brands to create an exciting new starship worthy of Porsche and Star Wars.”
The new ship will be featured at The Rise of Skywalker premiere alongside the new Porsche Taycan — an electric car that looks a lot like a First Order Stormtrooper.
Baby Yoda Watch
ICYMI, we finally got a look at some GOOD Baby Yoda merch this week. Yes, we know that he’s officially called the Child, but in the hearts of the masses, the little green toddler from The Mandalorian is forever Baby Yoda. Following the earlier reveal of some questionable merch and some better items from Funko and Mattel, the folks at Hasbro dropped the curtain on a range of toys that will hit stores next spring. While pictures are great, we now have some video to share of Hasbro’s talking plush version of the Child.
#ICYMI: @Hasbro unveiled its upcoming range of toys based on The Child aka #BabyYoda, and we've got all the details on what you can #FuelYourFandom with next spring: https://t.co/aCDELypOde
Take our credits, Hasbro! #TheMandalorian #StarWars pic.twitter.com/QgnNjWUQVS
— The Pop Insider (@thepopinsider) December 13, 2019
Hasbro’s assortment will most likely be seen in public for the first time at Toy Fair New York in February and should hit stores just in time for Star Wars Day (May the 4th be with You!) in the spring. In the meantime, you can change your Disney+ avatar to the Child!
Prepare for Dark Rey Cosplay
We still don’t know what the deal is with “Dark Rey” as she appears in the various trailers and TV spots, but the most likely scenario is that the appearance of a Sith-like version of the new trilogy hero is linked to a vision much like Luke Skywalker experienced in the Cave of Evil (now a Target-exclusive action figure set, BTW) in The Empire Strikes Back (1980). What we do know is that next year will likely bring forth a legion of Dark Rey cosplayers and Chronicle Collectibles is the first out of the gate with a double-bladed lightsaber to accompany the outfit. Of course, it’s a bit pricey at $1599.99, so maybe it’s better suited for display?
An Exclusive Clip Teases Pure Evil
There’s a lot of debate on whether or not officially released trailers and clips count as “spoilers,” but this one is pretty heavy, so we’re throwing up the spoiler alert just in case you’d like to go into The Rise of Skywalker without seeing certain things. That said, the Star Wars Facebook page debuted a clip that shows Supreme Leader Kylo Ren/Ben Solo about to face off against the evil voice from the recent trailers. Actually, we should probably say voices at this point.
https://www.facebook.com/StarWars/videos/472503763458444/?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARDkaWtG8r_nk5EQgUVdChIP69mUUWEkeoBwVkmJltQvfJb1VcJle7JYCDUyFzLzDG3-7Ff1nxta87zjy3VoE5Y7d0wmuh-JoRahdOx3JwDr6wrRYEgcUKSPUQEYzswmPTbrDX3fEzXhqMIfKfngQs4Bu-Z_3r6Mxl15KqyIt84E_IjepGZ5uExhg8Nxc4vOMGhSFkwWgr2EuUr93BSHHKgoxTaslJWjV25LDn3MQDgrEH6Sa-W0rBC5_m-X4EZJRylKQR56opUyorJ2YFEzBZLydahGXCGUNEUiXZ9k1dAaH8RSVPi-_J_LZOn3A-tTIHltGgAa9_bA4sIjWZRkCeNoW9d2ceGdknfv4g&__tn__=-R
Further Transmissions
- By now you probably have Disney+, but if not there’s a Star Wars marathon airing on TNT this weekend.
- The Rise of Skywalker has entered the Battle Royale with an exclusive TIE Whisper glider and a preview of the film appearing in Epic Games’ Fortnite.
- A new Star Wars Families video has been released.
- Amazon has a special Rise of Skywalker hub that includes an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the new film.
