‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ is still enjoying its stellar run at the box office but eyes are now turning to the next installment in the franchise’s new trilogy, ‘Star Wars VIII.’ While the film is still months away from being in theaters, Disney and Lucasfilm have issued this little teaser and a press release to announce that filming has officially begun.
WARNING: There are spoilers here so if you haven’t seen ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ yet… REALLY? Just turn in your geek card now or get ready to read some spoilers.
The teaser opens with an aerial shot of Skellig Michael in Ireland and highlights the momentous meeting between Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Jedi Master Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). And just as you are hoping for more, it cuts to Rian Johnson welcoming the crew and fans to ‘Episode VIII’ all as the iconic ‘Star Wars’ main theme plays:
(Let’s face it, Disney and Lucasfilm could have just shown a blank screen with the ‘Star Wars’ theme playing and we’d get all excited.)
In addition to this great production teaser, an official cast list was released. Take a look:
STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII NOW FILMING
CAMERAS ROLL AND THE CAST IS CONFIRMED FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER OF THE STAR WARS SAGA.
Rey took her first steps into a larger world in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and will continue her epic journey with Finn, Poe, and Luke Skywalker in the next chapter of the continuing Star Wars saga, Star Wars: Episode VIII, which began principal photography at Pinewood Studios in London on February 15, 2016.
Star Wars: Episode VIII, which is written and directed by Rian Johnson and continues the storylines introduced in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, welcomes back cast members Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, and Andy Serkis. New cast members will include Academy Award winner Benicio Del Toro, Academy Award nominee Laura Dern, and talented newcomer Kelly Marie Tran.
Star Wars: Episode VIII is produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Ram Bergman and executive produced by J.J. Abrams, Jason McGatlin, and Tom Karnowski. Joining the production crew will be some of the industry’s top talent, including Steve Yedlin (Director of Photography), Bob Ducsay (Editor), Rick Heinrichs (Production Designer), Peter Swords King (Hair and Make-Up Designer), and Mary Vernieu (US Casting Director). They will be joining returning crew members Pippa Anderson (Co-Producer, VP Post Production), Neal Scanlan (Creature & Droid FX Creative Supervisor), Michael Kaplan (Costume Designer), Jamie Wilkinson (Prop Master), Chris Corbould (SFX Supervisor), Rob Inch (Stunt Coordinator), Ben Morris (VFX Supervisor), and Nina Gold (UK Casting Director).
Star Wars: Episode VIII is scheduled for release December 15, 2017.
Obviously, no mention of Harrison Ford was in the press release (yes, those who saw ‘TFA’ know why) but oddly no mention of Peter Mayhew who played Chewbacca. While Kenny Baker’s name is also missing, it has been long rumored that Jimmy Vee has taken over the role.
While it has already been reported that Laura Dern and Benicio del Toro would star in ‘Star Wars VIII,’ what is surprising is the addition of Kelly Marie Tran. Could this newcomer be the one that beat out Tatiana Maslany, Gina Rodriguez, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, and Olivia Cooke for one of the rumored new coveted role in the film? Time will tell.
Of course, since J.J. Abrams (who is notorious for his secretive nature) is not directing this installment, so hopefully more information will be released as filming progresses (like who Dern, Tran, and del Toro will be playing).
Keep checking back here as we’ll let you know all the details from the set once we know!
‘Star Wars: Episode VIII’ is slated to be in theaters December 15, 2017.
Source: Star Wars
