Lucasfilm announced today production has begun on “Star Wars: Episode IX,” and their news starts out with a bang. Perhaps in a way to avoid spoilers that inevitably leak, Lucasfilm has revealed out of the gate that Mark Hamill will return as Luke Skywalker, presumably as a force ghost that many fans hoped and prayed for after his death in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.”
Secondly, we now know how Lucasfilm will deal with the death of Carrie Fisher in part: she’ll reappear in the role of Leia Organa using previously unreleased footage shot for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” “We desperately loved Carrie Fisher,” ‘Episode IX’ director J.J. Abrams said in a statement released by the company. “Finding a truly satisfying conclusion to the Skywalker saga without her eluded us. We were never going to recast or use a CG character. With the support and blessing from her daughter, Billie, we have found a way to honor Carrie’s legacy and role as Leia in Episode IX by using unseen footage we shot together in Episode VII.”
Interestingly enough, this means Leia won’t be killed off during the opening crawl which many assumed, and will be part of the first act in some shape or form.
Returning cast members include Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and Billie Lourd. Joining the cast of ‘Episode IX’ are Kerri Russell (“The Americans”), Naomi Ackie and Richard E. Grant, who will be joined by veteran “Star Wars” actors Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, and Billy Dee Williams, who will reprise his role as Lando Calrissian.
Throughout the release, Lucasfilm emphasizes the end of the Skywalker Saga and so one has to wonder if the chapter closes on this set of characters—Rey and the entire cast of new characters—and or if that’s just fancy talk for the story concludes the arc laid out by George Lucas in Episodes I-VI and this new cast will continue forth in “other stories.
Looks like it’s just because her deal hasn’t formally closed, she’s in the film. As for the newcomers, fans will know actors like Richard E. Grant from “Logan,” but further back, Criterion classics like “How to Get Ahead in Advertising” and “Withnail and I.” British actress Naomi Ackie won a British Independent Film Award for most promising newcomer last year and is best known for her secondary role in 2016’s “Lady Macbeth.” She’s also appeared in 2015 episodes of “Doctor Who” and 2016 eps of “The Five,” but is very new and has no IMDB credits beyond 2015.
‘Star Wars: Episode IX’ will begin filming at London’s Pinewood Studios on August 1, 2018. J.J. Abrams returns to direct the final installment of the Skywalker saga. Abrams co-wrote the screenplay with Academy Award-winning writer Chris Terrio (“Argo,” “Batman V. Superman”). Composer John Williams, who has scored every chapter in the ‘Star Wars’ saga since 1977’s ‘A New Hope,’ will return to a galaxy far, far away with Episode IX. It is said to be his last score for the “Star Wars” series. The release is scheduled for December 2019. Here’s the announcement video.