The just-concluded ComicCon 2015 event in San Diego spilled revelations concerning the characters of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which is the seventh installment of the “Star Wars” space opera series that is scheduled to be released in theaters on December 18.
Although the latest trailer of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” was not shown during the convention, the director of the film, J.J. Abrams, revealed some of the new characters that will appear in the movie. In addition, Abrams also provided a hint regarding the setting of the seventh installment of the film.
The first character revealed was Admiral Ackbar, who became known for the line ‘It’s a trap!’ The commander, who looks like a squid, appeared in the rebellion attack near the end of the “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi,” the sixth installment of the movie franchise, according to Christian Today. Abrams said that the squid-like commander will play a bigger role in the upcoming “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
On the villains’ side, General Hux will be the new character. He will be in charge of the Starkiller base. It was revealed that actor Domhnall Gleeson will portray Hux’s character. The Irish actor was known for his role in “Harry Potter” movies as Bill Weasley. Just like Admiral Ackbar, General Hux will play a big role but for the evil side.
In addition to the new characters, director Abrams also provided some hints regarding the setting of the film. Abrams said that the movie will reveal what happened several years after the battle on Planet Endor and the attack on the Death Star. The events that will be seen in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” are around 30 years after the “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.”
The latest revelations are more than enough to excite fans further on the upcoming release of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
Leaked image confirmation
It seems that fans are not the only ones excited for the upcoming “Star Wars” installment as John Boyega, who will play as Finn in the movie, revealed a new promotional image of the film in his official Instagram account.
The image showed Finn holding a new Stormtrooper blaster with Chewbacca. According to Slash Film, the new promo image posted by Boyega is not new as it was part of a bigger banner which unofficially appeared in a July-December 2015 catalog of the Russian LEGO.
It appears that the promotional picture only confirms the authenticity of the banner that appeared in the catalog that was posted by Star Wars 7 News in June.
Aside from Finn and Chewbacca, the banner featured some of the major characters of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” like Rey, Kylo Ren, Captain Phasma, a Flametrooper and the new TIE Fighters. However, Han Solo and Poe Dameron were not in the photo.
In addition to the photo, a video was officially made available on YouTube on July 10, which shows some of the behind-the-scenes footage and explanations how the Star Wars Episode 7 team created the effects and costumes of the characters.
This time, the fans did not have to guess whether the video is fake or real since the director of the film and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy was the one who revealed this to the public in Hall H during the ComicCon 2015.
Leaked prelude
Apart from having a leaked image, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” seems to have a leaked prelude as well for its upcoming movie featuring a trilogy connecting “The Return of the Jedi” and “The Force Awakens.”
The new trilogy was penned by Chuck Wendig, a sci-fi fantasy novelist known for “Blackbird” and “The Blue Blazes.” Although Wendig’s “Star Wars” novel is set to be released on September 4, an employee mistakenly revealed an excerpt of the first installment, “Aftermath,” on July 16.
According to Entertainment Weekly, the opening of the “Aftermath” revealed chaotic moments that followed after the Imperial police tried to exercise their authority to the people. Unfortunately, things went out of control and they had to make a violent, desperate alternative.
Contrary to what is being pictured in the film, where a perfect environment seems to exist, the novel revealed that peace was nowhere to be found after “The Return of Jedi.” Instead, the opening of the novel portrayed a violent uprising.
The exclusive excerpt was released under the permission of Del Ray, a division of Random House LLC.