'The Last Jedi' Will Get Dark Side Version Of BB-8 With BB-9E

Today is Force Friday aka “Star Wars” Toy Day, where retailers and companies all over the world get to unveil the products featuring officially approved branding from a galaxy far, far away. So, if you’ve dreamed of buying chicken noodle soup with “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” imagery on it, you certainly can. However, in the midst of that commercial blitzkrieg came one revelation that caught the attention of fans.

In Rian Johnson‘s upcoming ‘The Last Jedi’ everyone’s beloved droid BB-8 is going to have a Dark Side counterpart: BB-9E. Walt Disney confirms its indeed a new character from the film, part of the astromech unit of the First Order that keep their starships and machinery operational. The cynical side of me thinks this is something Lucasfilm cooked up to sell more toys, essentially giving everyone a chance to buy a different flavor of BB-8. However, I hope Johnson has found an organic way to introduce the character, and that any potential BB-8 vs. BB-9E showdown isn’t as cheesy as that sounds.

“Since ‘Star Wars’ became a cultural phenomenon 40 years ago, consumer products have been a critical part of the fan experience, helping to introduce new audiences to the franchise’s rich stories and characters. Technology-powered storytelling is at the core of the ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ product line, and will immerse fans in the Star Wars universe like never before,” said Jimmy Pitaro, Chairman of Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media.

That’s basically a long way of saying, “We’ve got more toys and R2-D2 towels to sell you!” But to be honest, we wish Johnson had kept the nickname for the character….