The Star Wars film series has been around since 1977 but in just one week it will essentially end.
Yes, they will make more (many, many more) Star Wars movies and shows and books and it’ll always be a vital part of our cultural tapestry. But those stories will be all new chapters. The tale that began with a young Luke Skywalker longing for a better life as he stared at a pair of setting twin suns will come to a close on December 20th when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is released. That’s it for the Skywalker Saga! It’s all over. I don’t know about you but that fact makes me feel some things! Although I wouldn’t consider myself an avid, fanatical Star Wars devotee, the franchise has been a part of my life since…well, BEFORE my life began. To know that it is ending in a major way is kind of startling. I have never known a world without the Skywalker family.
To celebrate (and mourn) the end of this epic, world-changing adventure, Disney has released a slew of new images that show us some of the stars and talent behind The Rise of Skywalker. All your favorites are here: JJ Abrams! Billy Dee Williams! Daisy Ridley! Kelly Marie Tran! Some giant worm thing! The whole gang!
This last round of images aren’t really necessary. Disney knows they have a monster hit on their hands even if they didn’t release one more picture or commercial. This movie is going to do business with a capital B. It’s going to make more money than God. But this film, more than any other Star Wars, is going to mean something different. It really is the end of something massive and special. Even if you don’t care for the movies you have to admit that the tale of Luke, Leia, Han and Darth Vader has fundamentally altered pop culture and the world as a whole. While the main characters have changed over time (Anakin, Padme and Obi-Wan in the prequels, Rey, Finn and Kylo in the new trilogy) this has all been one cohesive and sprawling story. There will be plenty more Star Wars stories to tell but the journey of Luke Skywalker and his friends and enemies will conclude in a week and that’s a big, big deal.
Enjoy the images below. Make sure to click to enlarge. Hat tip to Collider for the pics.
