Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 42

Ewan McGregor is Jelly

     This was a painfully slow week in Star Wars news, with only two tidbits of "news". First of all, on the Late Show With David Letterman, in an interview with Oscar Isaac, Letterman said he had been given actual footage from the trailer to show on TV. After Isaac started to look terrified at the prospect of witnessing a leak, ending his career, a clip from the 1940s of some guy in a rocket suit came up. I guess it was supposed to be funny, but it spared Isaac the fate of having to witness a leak of The Force Awakens on live TV. That's how you know this has been one slow week.
     The second piece of information came from Vanity Fair, which interviewed McGregor about his new movie. Naturally, the conversation turned to Star Wars. When asked about his possible involvement in The Force Awakens, he said he was "still waiting for the call". He also criticized the new lightsaber hilt, saying: "I was a bit dubious about the hilt on the new lightsaber. It's got a hilt now. It doesn't need a hilt. If you know how to handle a lightsaber, like we did, you don't need a hilt. That's just one thing I think they might have got wrong." Now, this comment might seem innocent (and with good reason) enough, but if you have been intensely following Star Wars news the past 2 years, 3 months, as I have, you will find a pattern with Ewan McGregor. Several times you find him being asked about the possibility of appearing in TFA, and most often he says they still haven't contacted him but he's open to the possibility of appearing. He's been asked these kind of question for over two years, and he just might be tired of it (Note: This, being my opinion, may or may not actually reflect what Hollywood superstar Ewan McGregor actually thinks about his lack of a role in Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens [Produced by Lucasfilm and Bad Robot Productions and distribute by Walt Disney Studios]. Take these words with a grain of salt. For more information please contact my lawyer.). He even got together with Mark Hamill and Samuel L. Jackson to see if he could audition for a character, only half joking. Recently, he told NYLON Guys Magazine that even though he would like to have a role in TFA, filming in tech heavy movies was like "watching paint dry." Sour grapes much? That's not including how practical the film production was, using far less green screen than the prequels. I think this is a very subtle case of jealousy. Because they got the sequels and he got the prequels. It was bad luck, indeed. He isn't a bad actor. He just didn't get to act during the prequels because of all the over reliance on technology. He might feel cheated out of a good Star Wars movie. But he'll keep trying.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 41

Han Solo Will Die (?)

     Owing to a complete lack of news this week, I have looked into a question that has been bothering fans of Star Wars ever since the new trilogy was announced back in 2012. Will any of the main characters die? Specifically, will any of the original trilogy characters die? Well, I'm not quite sure about the characters of Luke and Leia, but if any one of the main characters bit it in the upcoming installment, it would be Han Solo. It's not because the fans want it. It's not because Disney wants it. It's because Harrison Ford wants it.

     It all started in 1982, when filming of Return of the Jedi had begun. Harrison Ford recalled in the 2004 documentary Empire of Dreams that he wanted Han Solo to be killed for the good of the other characters. Ford said, "“I thought Han Solo should die. I thought he ought to sacrifice himself for the other two characters. He’s got no mama. He’s got no papa. He’s got no future. He has no story responsibilities at this point. So let’s allow him to commit self-sacrifice.". Ford was getting fed up with the reputation of being Han Solo, because he was typecast. He couldn't land any more major movie roles for quite some time. But somehow he broke through, while the other two leading actors, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher, faded back into relative obscurity. Ford, in a 2010 interview with MTV, when asked if he would reprise his role as Han Solo if he had the opportunity, said, "I wouldn't bet on that, no. No, no, no. Han Solo was very good to me at a certain point in my career. But I’m done. I’m done with him."

     How ironic.

     But maybe Ford just said yes to The Force Awakens so he could have the sendoff he always wanted. It's very possible that he could sacrifice himself for some character in the upcoming film. Then he could finally cleanse himself of Han Solo. Fans will stop asking about if he will be in upcoming films. Peace. But money talks. How else did he get into the sequels in the first place? Also, his injury during the summer highlights the fact that he won't be in these movies forever, because the physical toll these movies demand is considerable. That would be another reason to not want to continue for another four years, not including spinoffs. Maybe fans want this. I think they would rather have a Han Solo sendoff than a cliffhanger at the end of this new trilogy, in place just in case another barrage of movies is made. If Disney is fine with it, then why is it bad? It's closing one chapter in the saga and opening another. If he doesn't die in TFA, then he'll most likely die in one of the next two. True, it will be sad to let him go. But I think it will make him, and his fans, happy.

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 40

George Lucas Almost Directed The Force Awakens

     Well, we've certainly dodged a bullet this time.
     George Lucas, in an interview with USA Today, he said that he was planning to make Episode VII (a working title, it probably wouldn't be called The Force Awakens), release it in May 2015, and then sell Lucasfilm. He reasoned that since each trilogy was a ten year commitment, he would just release the first one and then sell the studio for the company to finish the trilogy. Before this plan came to fruition, Disney stepped in and bought Lucasfilm for $4.5 billion, and now it is to be released in 338 days, on December 18, 2015, seven months later than Lucas' planned date. Also Lucas would direct the new movie had not Disney stepped in.
     Think about that.
     If Disney hadn't bought Star Wars, we'd have heard of a huge new Star Wars film right now, a sequel to Return of the Jedi, to be released in May and directed by George Lucas. Without Disney I'm sure that fans would be less likely to watch it. Even with all of the complaining that occurred in the months following the 2012 sale of Lucasfilm, about Disney being the one to make new Star Wars movies, everyone in the back of their mind knew that Disney was going to make those movies awesome. I mean, just that summer, with the release of Avengers, that grossed over $1.5 billion, people saw that Disney was serious about making good films. The 2009 Disney-Marvel transaction was most likely subject to just as much scrutiny, and now, with Marvel piling on sequel after sequel, at least for average Marvel fans, it was the right choice. But many were worried that the constant spinoffs and sequels would stretch the franchise too thin. After ten films released and eleven more to come (possibly more; the movie releases are planned until 2028), one of these days, the audience will grow tired of Marvel movies and one of them will flop and the spell will be broken. But maybe that's too apocalyptic. To be honest, I don't really care about what Disney does to Marvel-- I'm not much of a comic book fan-- but I don't want Disney to pump out a new film every single year, to tell the back story of Yoda or whatever. It's not about giving fans what they want. It's about making as much money as possible. Which, to be honest, is the main reason Episode VII is being made. But if I had to choose Disney over the director of the prequel, I'd choose Disney any day. The fact that Lucas just planned to make one movie and throw the rest of the trilogy to some company to destroy it shows that he doesn't respect the franchise enough to see it all the way through. But you have to feel sympathy for him; Star Wars took up so much of his life, you can't blame him for wanting to stop. But, remember, now that he's not a part of the production, he is seeing the movie for the first time. And it seems like he's genuinely excited. He said in his interview, "The only thing I really regret about Star Wars is the fact I never got to see it — I never got to be blown out of my seat when the ship came over the screen. The next one, I'll be able to enjoy it like anybody else."
     It's probably for the best. But try keep this next quote in mind:

Star Wars Episode VII News: Week 39

J.J. Abrams is Terrified

     Here it is. 2015. As far as Hollywood is concerned, the most important year of the last two decades. So many big name movies are coming out this year, many smaller films are moving their releases to 2016 as to not conflict with these juggernauts. Big titles like Jurassic World, Avengers: Age of Ultron, MI5, Tommorowland, American Sniper, Fifty Shades of Grey, Ant Man, Spectre, Mad Max: Fury Road, Independence Day 2,  and of course, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Basically, it's the year of sequels. But the two most anticipated films of the year are definitely Avengers and Star Wars. Avengers comes out May 1, while TFA comes out December 18, so it will generate more buzz in 2016. The rumors leading up to the commencement of 2015 concerning The Force Awakens have been rampant, Oscar Isaac, who plays Poe Dameron in the upcoming film, thinks they couldn't be further from the truth.

     In an interview with Yahoo! Movies, he said, I don’t think these little leaks necessarily ruined watching the trailer...And also, the [theories] that get that formulated based on these things — they couldn’t be more far off-base.” Is he saying this sincerely? Or just to distract from an actual leak that may have occurred? He won't elaborate. But he did say one thing concerning the secrecy surrounding production, “They’re incredibly protective, because nowadays, with however many hundreds of blogs and this and that, people are just ravenous for content.”

     Well said.

     In casting news--wait, casting news? I thought casting news ended in May, when production started. But, apparently there's been a breakthrough. According to Twitch, a trio of Indonesian actors who starred in The Raid and The Raid 2 will be landing a role in the film. The roles are unknown and Twitch does not name their sources. However, if this rumor is true, they will most likely have the role of stunt doubles, keeping with the practical over digital effects method The Force Awakens is using.

     Finally, as 2015 begins, and with 345 days left until the release of SWTFA, it seems like J.J. Abrams is under increasing amounts of stress.

     In an interview with MTV, Abrams, when asked about expectations for the film (and reminded that it was the most anticipated film of the year), he said, "It is, without question, an intense and terrifying prospect, and you haven't made it any easier talking about it just now, but the opportunity, I think, is greater than the fear, greater than the risk. I’m more excited about the work that everyone has done in the movie and the incredible cast."

     Abrams is no doubt feeling the heat, both from corporate higher ups and fans alike. He knows that if his film does not deliver, he will be known as the man who singlehandedly ruined the Star Wars franchise beyond repair. It must be a tremendous burden. but, at least according to interviews, he is confident in the skill of the cast and the crew, along with every member of the production team. But he failed to mention one person involved: himself.