Tag Archives: JJ Abrams

JJ Abrams was a guest on “Popcorn with Peter Travers” last Friday and he had a few things to say about Star Wars fans and criticism of his movies. Click through for a few quotes from the 25-minute interview!

JJ Abrams and Peter Travers

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Even though this is not directly related to Star Wars, it may still be of interest to many. The Hollywood Reporter has an article on their website saying that JJ Abrams and his production company Bad Robot are close to finalizing a $500 million deal with WarnerMedia. Abrams, who was under contract with Paramount (not that he made any movies for them in recent years, thanks to Star Wars), is already said to move the feature film deal over from Viacom (Paramount) to WarnerMedia. That probably means Abrams will no longer be involved with Star Wars (or Star Trek) in the future, unless Disney pays WarnerMedia for the services of JJ Abrams, which seems unlikely.

Being friends with Bob Iger sure has its perks. For example, your get your own very private tour of Galaxy’s Edge without the distraction of other people crowding the place. Click through for two more photos!

Click for much larger version

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There are still some new SWCC interviews released. In this one here MTV News talks to JJ Abrams about how much the plans for the trilogy have changed since the beginning. JJ Abrams gives a very roundabout reply (which basically means: yes).

JJ Abrams also mentions in the interview that they weren’t looking to play games with audiences. Not every last little secret may be demystified, but they knew they had to give fans a satisfying conclusion. Also: JJ Abrams feigns surprise when it’s mentioned that Ben Solo is the only Skywalker left and that it must be him therefore that rises. JJ would never confirm or deny anything here, in true JJ fashion, but it begs the question if JJ has some other Skywalker in mind. JJ outright circled around the question if we will learn more about Rey’s backstory in IX. And he also confirms once more that he consulted with George Lucas before he even began writing the movie.

Fandango interviewed JJ Abrams at SWCC and he talked a bit about The Force Awakens, and adresses the criticism that the movie was too similar to A New Hope. According to Abrams they didn’t set out to copy any one Star Wars movie on purpose. Then he goes on and talks about what it meant to write the script for The Rise of Skywalker and how they (meaning JJ Abrams and Chris Terio) very much wanted to make sure that they are not inadvertently influenced by one thing for Episode IX. According to Abrams it was not about “let’s choose that one and make a riff on that”, which is a concern that was voiced by many fans. But still, according to Abrams The Rise of Skywalker is the culmination of Episodes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 and it was their job to figure out how exactly it accomplishes that. You can watch the entire (quite short) interview on Fandango’s Twitter page or by clicking on the image below!

Click the image for the interview clip

Now that’s a very interesting tidbit which was revealed following the Episode IX panel at SWCC earlier today. JJ Abrams actually consulted with George Lucas for Episode IX and the return of Emperor Palpatine! Does it mean that some of George’s ideas made it into Episode IX? Or was JJ merely asking for some insight into the character of Palpatine? Either way it’s good to see that George’s input is still valuable, no matter how minor (the wardrobe scene in Solo) or major (Palpatine’s return) it may be. JJ certainly knows that the franchise owes everything to George Lucas and for him to have some input on the very last Skywalker movie is only appropriate, I think.

Tweeted by Star Wars Holocron on Twitter

Wow, lots of news today, and even more to come tomorrow with Hasbro’s NY Toy Fair panel. JJ Abrams tweeted today that the filming for Episode IX has come to a close. Hopefully that means we’ll get a trailer and a title soon!

Guess what? I watched The Force Awakens for the first time since it was in theaters over three years ago tonight. Those that read with any regularity know how I feel about the film. But if you don’t, in short, I think it’s the worst Star Wars film of the bunch (yes, I think it’s worse than The Last Jedi by a landslide). And I would go so far to say that it’s one of the worst films “period” I’ve ever seen too (for its deception of not being much more than an Episode IV reboot). That’s not hyperbole. I feel it took Star Wars down a path that a large chunk of the community couldn’t follow. Anyway, this isn’t another chance to jibe the film. I have rethought a couple of things, and I felt it is worth sharing. Click through for more.

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Variety has a new exclusive story: apparently JJ Abrams is seeking to strike a huge deal with an entertainment company, in an effort to consolidate his business. As of now, Abrams has a contract with Paramount (for movies) and Warner Bros. (for TV related work). Abrams wants to change all that and is seeking a deal that would encompass not just movies and TV shows, but also digital content, music, games, consumer products and even theme park opportunities. Click through for some more details!

“You want to make a deal with me!”

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Director J.J. Abrams posted a very first photo from the set of Episode IX earlier today on Twitter. It doesn’t reveal or show much really, but still, it’s evidence that filming has begun. Now J.J. has the momumental task ahead of him to deliver the grand finale to the Skywalker saga. What you see in the photo is the camera rig and if you squint very hard it may very well be that John Boyega and some other person (Daisy Ridley?) are in the cockpit of what could be the Millennium Falcon. It also seems Finn finally got rid rid of his leather jacket, I wonder what Poe thinks about that!

According to a report from Variety, Keri Russell  (The Americans, Felicity, Waitress) is in early talks to join Star Wars: Episode IX.  After meeting with several actresses for the role, which requires “action-heavy fight scenes”, Episode IX director JJ Abrams and Lucasfilm  agreed that Russell was the right choice. Abrams and Russell previously worked together on Felicity and Mission Impossible III. Abrams plans to cast two more actors before production on Episode IX begins at the end of the month. Keri Russell is certainly a very talented actress and a welcome addition to Star Wars. Head over to Variety for the full report!

Keri Russell in The Americans

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Our colleagues at Fanthatracks have uncovered the new working title for Episode IX. And apparently, the working title is: trIXie.

Is JJ Abrams a fan of My Little Pony? Read the full story on the Fanthatracks website.

Meet Trixie.

Website That Hashtag Show reports that the casting process for Episode IX is underway. And apparently, JJ Abrams and casting director Nina Gold are looking for the following:

a female lead, 40-50 years old, to play the role of “MARA.”

It has to be said that it’s common practice to use code names instead of the real character names in casting, so it doesn’t necessarily mean that Mara Jade will be in Episode IX. Episode IX is still scheduled to begin filming in July, so we should know more very soon. Who could this 40-50 year old woman be? Someone who takes over from Leia? Rey’s mother? Holdo’s sister? Or Mara Jade after all? Speculate away!

Director Ava DuVernay posted this on her Twitter yesterday:

Happy to share this historic news. A black woman directing stories in a galaxy far, far away. First unit director #JJAbrams Second unit director @VictoriaMahoney. #StarWarsE9 #StarWars

Victoria Mahoney and JJ Abrams

Click through for some details.

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When The Last Jedi was released one of the questions left unanswered by The Force Awakens was who exactly Rey’s parents were. And Rian Johnson’s movie gave an answer: they were filthy junk traders who sold Rey off for drinking money and they’re buried in a pauper’s grave on Jakku.

Ever since then fans have speculated if that was what JJ Abrams really had in mind when he set up the mystery, or if he had any solution to the mystery at all. Now, actor Simon Pegg was interviewed for a podcast and he shed some light on what JJ Abrams’ plan was. Click through to find out more.

Rey, sad about her parents

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JJ Abrams revealed on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert yesterday that the script for Star Wars Episode IX is complete.

Imaginary re-enactment of the script writing process

Now, whether that is just the first draft or the actual shooting script is not confirmed. Filming for Episode IX is scheduled to begin in July 2018. So there would still be enough time to tweak the script.

One quote from Abrams’ interview stands out: “Having a script in advance is something we haven’t always been lucky enough to have.”

What are your hopes and fears concerning Episode IX? Do you think JJ Abrams and Chris Terrio can bring the sequel trilogy to a satisfying conclusion? What’s your wishlist of things you’d like to see, or maybe you’d rather not see at all?
And: will JJ Abrams somehow include a scene with a sail barge in the script?

Watch the clip with Abrams here.

But will the movie be good or bad? According to Movieweb.com, Episode IX production begins this summer. Check out the article HERE.

Mark Hamill has revealed the original intended ending for The Force Awakens that Rian Johnson changed. Uh-oh, Mark. Maybe you should seal those lips of yours. Aren’t you in enough hot water with Disney’s legal team for bashing your onscreen character? All kidding aside, check out the article.

Living legend John Williams, now eighty-five years old, confirmed to Variety that he will score Episode IX. Williams simply told Episode IX director JJ Abrams, “I would very much like to complete that.” John Williams also shot down the idea that he planned on retiring and when asked to reflect on his sixty year career he said, “It feels like a good start.” Head over to Variety to check out the full story.

Well, we have all heard by now that JJ Abrams has taken over for Colin Trevorrow as the Director of Episode IX, but THR also found out that he basically screwed over Paramount and a 10-Million Dollar obligation in order to take on the Star Wars project. You can read more about it at TheHollywoodReporter.com. Geeze, drama has become constanty associated with Disney’s Star Wars movies! (although TLJ has been pretty smooth, knock on wood!)

THERE IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE! StarWars.com has updated their original story to note that Episode IX will now be released in theaters December 20, 2019.

BREAKING NEWS! JJ Abrams will write and direct Star Wars Episode IX! StarWars.com has the full story! Chris Terrio will co-write.