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Star Wars: Episode VII Cast Officially Announced
eldavojohn writes: "Word was leaking this week of some familiar faces in London hanging out together. Finally today an official cast listing for Star Wars Episode VII was handed down from on high to us mere mortals (Google Cache and Onion AV recap available). From the short release, 'Actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join the original stars of the saga, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film.' Let's not bicker and argue about who shot first but instead come to an agreement on expected levels of almost certain disappointment. No, this will not feature the Expanded Universe (EU) — you can now refer to those tales as 'Legends' which are not part of Star Wars canon. Instead prepare yourself for what will likely be the mother of all retcon films."
It's been a while since a site got hit by /. this bad. Site offline atm
No?
I am disappointed that they are even making another Star Wars "film."
Multiple Autoplay ads while unattended and minimized?
I come back into office and my computer is yacking away.
Good bye dickheads
These are not the actors you are looking for... (Or the story, writers, or director .....)
You KNOW that after 6 movies of declining quality and a host of spin off cartoons of horrible quality, this can go only one way. I'm already disappointed that they didn't leave the story alone after the first three (i.e. Star Wars, Empire, Return). What can they do now? Invent another alien character like JarJar Binks? PLEASE NOOOOOOooooooo!!!
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
The moves, announced by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, are the most severe sanctions the league has ever levied against a Franchise owner.
I deny that I have not avoided attaining the opposite of that which I do not want.
The most heart-wrenching part of the polygon article was finding out that Amy Hennig was going to be working on a new Star Wars game, but it'll be published by those bastards at EA.
After her work on LOK, I would have loved to see what came of that...
Well, at least it has live human people and not animations or 100% robots or dogs or some crazy crap like that.
To 'Star Wars Sequels'.
Thanks,
Everyone
Most fandoms would be furious at literally the entire storyline beyond six films being tossed aside, and new sequels commissioned using only a handful of the original actors and one original writer.
*Most* fandoms didn't have to go through the prequel trilogy and a series of bad retconny rereleases being made by the original creator himself.
Add the fact that the SWEU is remarkably uneven in quality - while some parts are downright brilliant, there's wide swaths of crap that were still canon because the movies didn't contradict it - and I can completely understand why the general fan reaction to this is "cautious optimism" or "reserved pessimism" rather than nerd rage (there's *some* nerd rage, but not much). My own response is "interested apathy" - it might be good, but I really just can't force myself to care anymore, not the way I used to.
It's a fucking movie. IT's going to violate its previous mythologic narratives? It was MADE UP by writers. IT doesn't matter. It will still be a crap movie.
Well thank you very much, Mr. . . . uh . . . Spoilsport.
I am not a crackpot.
...am looking forward to Andy Serkis' mocap performance of Jar Jar's light saber seppuku.
3D Printing Tips and Tricks at Zheng3.com
He already tried turning Star Trek into Star Wars, now they are giving him that franchise to ruin too... Star Wars, now with 5000% more lens flare!
Yes it's an anecdote! Were you expecting original research in a Slashdot comment?
OTOH it's a thread about something you claim not to care about, and yet you post here.
BTW +1 for the Fireside reference. :)
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
A long time ago in a galaxy... (unreadable due to lens flare) ....
STAR (unreadable due to lens flare)
Princess Leia (unreadable due to lens flare)....
Spaceship... (unwatchable due to lens flare)
Monster/special effects, jiggly camerawork. Things happen in film for no logical reason and plot holes you could fly the death star through....
This *is* a JJ Abhrams movie after all....
If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
Han shooting first means there was a shot fired second. There wasn't. Therefore Han didn't shoot first, he just shot.
Thank god they got Kenny Baker. I would hate to see someone else we can't see inside a metal can that makes beeping noises.
I wonder if they got the same key grip?
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
With Ford's last two movies, a cardboard cutout of him in his 40's would have done a better job than he did. His performance in Ender's Game was horrendous (don;t blame the script Asa Butterfield and Viola Davis did great with what they were given.) Hopefully Harrison Ford's reprisal will be Han Solo sitting in a Laser-Rocker in the old folks asteroid telling stories of who shot first to you bantha fodderlings.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"First things first -- but not necessarily in that order"
-- The Doctor, "Doctor
The narrative is the entire point. It's a movie.
If you want me to become emotionally invested in your story, you can't just suddenly say "Ignore everything I've been telling you for the past 30 years"
First off, in most of canon, books are rarely considered canon. (ie: Star Trek, etc) there are a few exceptions, like Babylon 5 where JMS took an active hand in things.
But frankly, I am so so so thankful that they are NOT doing the whole Skywalker Twins, Thrawn, etc. I never liked where those stories went. And so while you may be disappointed. I am sighing a huge sigh of relief.
And retcon, was the silly stuff they did in the prequels. I think JJ Abrams will be a bit more mindful. That said, I kind of would like to see some soft ties to a few of the prequels. Aliens pictured...or about the Gungan genocide that wiped out the entire race. Etc.
And got first post
No Greedo, you did not. ;-)
Perhaps, IJ4 and Ender's Game Mr. Ford was weak. But he was amazing in the recent Jackie Robinson film 42.
Maybe it was just me who was hoping that it wasn't a thing of the past.
Should be interesting to see how they wrap Star Wars around "climate change." Doubtless there will be some cute, fuzzy species suffering the over-heated environment of an exploited planet as they stare pitifully from their bushes at the throbbing machines of industry. The Jedi will blow up another huge Trade Federation command ship and then dispatch white, municipal looking Gaia ships to fix the atmosphere as the credits roll. Scenes from the Galactic Senate will provide ample opportunities for self-flagellating lectures about the environment.
You know that's what they're going to do.
Why all the snark and angst? The story submission dripped with unwarranted sarcasm ("cast list... handed down to us mere mortals?" What, you wanted them to consult you first?) and negativity ("mother of all retcon films" - the stupid EU stuff was never really canon to be retconned).
I know everyone was disappointed by Episodes 1-3, but let's get over it and give the new movies a chance. Oh, and for the record, yes Episode 1 was utter trash except for about 15 minutes, but Episode 2 was at least marginal and Episode 3 was a decent movie. Attribute all this to George Lucas being a changed person/storyteller and having nobody looking over his shoulder to say "George, that's a stupid idea." (Who elects a queen? And who elects a 14-year-old girl to anything? Oh, and why do you want to prevent Jedis from having kids when using the Force is apparently an inherited trait?) We can all go on about what was wrong with the first three movies, but they were not collectively the unmitigated disaster people love to claim.
I don't think that anyone can deny that George Lucas, in recent years, was an absolutely terrible steward of his own creations - basically "nothing going on" with Star Wars except for an awful animated TV show and EU novels that were a perpetual crapshoot in terms of quality. Star Wars was stagnant and heading downhill in terms of ever building on its legacy. Besides, the EU had run its course - the last novel I read had Han, Luke and Leia running around blowing things up while they practically needed scooters to get around, and the series failed to deliver a really compelling new generation of characters to care about (maybe except Jagged Fel and Ben Skywalker's Sith pseudo-girlfriend).
So the EU was done, George Lucas had run the Star Wars empire into the ground, and it was time to start fresh. There's a new sheriff in town, and I'm OK with that. I know this is heresy here, but I actually liked what J.J. Abrams did with the Star Trek reboot. I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt with the new Star Wars movies. Yes, I will go into the theater in December 2015 with managed expectations but I don't understand everyone piling on and assuming they will be terrible.
"95% of all Slashdot
These aren't the memories you're looking for.
rewriting history since 2109
If there is one thing Disney is good at it's their ability to take someone else's work and run with it.
The Star Wars Extended Universe was considered canon to a large degree. To quote from the Wikipedia article:
That degree of coordination and the involvement of studio figures really set Star Wars publications apart from Star Trek. For the latter, Paramount and the TV and film writers were pretty upfront about the fact that Pocket Books' Star Trek novels, while authorized, had bugger-all to do with the canon.
So, after many years of tie-in products being seen as a part of a whole, it is understandable that the decision of Disney to junk all that disappoints longtime fans.
... to the idea of a star wars film beginning without John Williams conducting the LSO, playing the 20th Century Fox opening them that then leads into the main title.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
You know how you can retain your good memories of Star Wars? Don't watch the movies. As for the rest of us who never read the books and thought the original movies were a range of merely okay to pretty dismal, let us watch these new movies in equally okay to dismal peace.
Episode VII? But they haven't even done the Episodes I-III yet! I do hope they don't screw them up, though. The first 3 episodes (by which I mean Episodes IV-VI) had so much promise.
I thought he had to be in everything these days
If you want me to become emotionally invested in your story, you can't just suddenly say "Ignore everything I've been telling you for the past 30 years"
This isn't a change of existing policy. All along has been the understanding that only the movies are considered part of Lucasfilm canon.
Other people can write as many stories as they want, but that doesn't mean "it happened" in the official universe.
I enjoyed the hell out of the Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Singular. The sequels were shite.
Really??????
Cause Star Trek and Into Darkness both cream Star Trek V, and quite a few of the TNG movies.
Ewoks.
Jabba's entourage.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
The EU has always been subject to being tossed out for the films. I mean, I still have a copy of the 1994 "A Guide to the Star Wars Universe". On pages xviii-xx, it has a timeline that establishes the following:
1) C-3PO is 57 years older than Anakin Skywalker.
2) Obi-Wan Kenobi is only five years older than Anakin Skywalker.
3) The Clone Wars ended 17 years before Anakin became Darth Vader and Palpatine became Emperor.
4) Anakin was in his mid-thirties when he fathered Luke & Leia.
How could anybody have anything like a reasonable expectation that things would be different this time?
funny I was going to say thank god they only made one matrix movie.
It is a good thing they never made an sequels to it.
i thought once I was found, but it was only a dream.
We all have opinions about the entertainment media we have enjoyed. Let's disagree with each other about it!
(No really, sequelitus is bullshit, and makes it harder for good new concepts to get out)
C'mon people - they have Ming the MFing Merciless in this. In a just world, Brian Blessed would have a place in this movie.
"OLD BEN'S ALIVE!?" "Wookiees, DIIIIVE!"
Aping Flash Gordon for a Star Wars sequel is one of the less grievous mistakes they could make.
The original movies have always been kids movies. For us old timers we were teens or less when we saw them and loved them for the action, adventures, swashbuckling laser space fights. As we grew older our glass became rosier and rosier. We then started making Jedi a religion on the census and other squirrel crap nutty stuff like that. The prequels came out and we hated them because they "ruined" our star wars. We all failed to notice that our kids loved them though. Try getting your 6-8 year old to sit through star wars then pop in Phantom Menace and see how long they sit. Star Wars movies were always made for kids to love, we just stopped being kids. Go back and watch other shows that we loved. All out young nerd loves were just that. Let me know how well the original Transformers or GI Joe cartoon holds up. Go find the high school head cheerleader while your at it. She may have a little grey in her hair too.
I though you said Steven Moffat for a second there.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
I saw an interesting fantheory on this subject. To summarize, his theory was that the secret origin of the Jedi order is that force sensitives were growing in number across the galaxy due to the force sensitivity being a heritable trait. The power of the force easily lent itself to megalomaniacal personality development (essentially random people discovering themselves to be akin to gods among men). In order to resolve this growing issue. The Jedi Order was formed as a means of controlling the growth of the force sensitive population, by indoctrinating them with celibacy to cut down on the volume and potency of Force Sensitives in the galaxy, and avoid a need for mass genocide from the fearful majority of non-force sensitives, as well as avoiding too many power-mad force users. Over time, the overarching reason for the formation of the Jedi Order was lost over time, and all that they remember is the specific teachings of celibacy and self-discipline. Force users who simply embraced the gift of the force and welcomed the power it brought were labeled as the enemies of the Jedi Order, and called "Sith" by the Jedi.
At the neighbourhood kids running around on his lawn.
I stole this Sig
That is the first reasonable explanation I have ever seen for that. Thank you. I'm not sure I buy it, but it is at least interesting to think about.
"95% of all Slashdot
The Goods:
1. Say what you want, but J.J. can make actors act to their potential, puts emotions into scenes, and by all accounts is a fan of the Star Wars franchise.
2. At least some attempt at a continuity will be welcome.
3. I've never liked the EU books, so I'm not turned off.
The Bads:
1. Watch out for that LENS FLARE!
2. I went to Disneyland last week with my girls and I saw Mickey Mouse swinging a light saber. How many hidden Mickey's will be in the film, and those that aren't so hidden? The script notes from the executives may kill the chance at a good story.
I'm looking forward to it, fanboys will always complain, but I'll give the creator of LOST his shot.
"Who are you?" "No one of consequence." "I must know." "Get used to disappointment."
I would say that Episodes I-III, which went back and revised/reinvented the backstory of the original trilogy, would be The Mother Of All Retcon Films before Episode VII would be.* Since that's what "retcon" actually means.
These upcoming films are simply a partial reboot, wiping out one semi-official post-RotJ continuity, and replacing it with an all-new all-different one.
*Actually there are other, better candidates, but let's confine ourselves to the Star Wars universe here.
http://alternatives.rzero.com/
My expected level of dissapointment is zero because the movie will be freaking awesome. max von sydow is a badass and I can't wait to see which sith lord he will be. i assume all the original cast will have a brief cameo, not a major role like the mistake in IJ4. The other cast I haven't heard of. What about James Earl Jones? I guess it doesn't matter since Vader is mort, although there could be flashbacks etc.
If all the other canon is now Legend, then what's left is just generic Sci-Fi universe. Without the name recognition I wouldn't know or care that the story was "of Star Wars". IMO, it would be just as much of a "Star Wars" flick if they changed the universe out from under the characters instead of the other way around.
I leave you with: Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager in a Galaxy Not so Far Away.
I've heard it was more about avoiding any emotional attachments, and seeing as this is an important part of parenting the two don't go together very well.
horror vacui
"Luke, I am the force ghost projection of your father..."
The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
our choices are not: JJ Abrams or Star Trek 6
and we don't have to choose between "fan service" and "general appeal" either
it's these stupid, reductive contextualizations that make it up to the marketing morons who monitor "social media" for what "fans" want to see
Thank you Dave Raggett
Don't forget, Max Von Sydow played Ming the Merciless, so this could be completely awesome!
It's more like attempting to do a dozen full-length, theatre-released feature films based on the Silmarillion...
I for one would be delighted if they did that, money grab or no money grab. The nice thing about the Silmarillion is it's basically just Tolkien's collected backstory notes to himself. It's a miscellaneous pile of names and dates and the barest description of events. There are no characters with depth, no intricate plot lines, nothing I don't want to see raped and pillaged. (Rabbit sleight ride, anyone?) There are any number of basic plots that could be fleshed out and done as movies, and the results could be excellent.
A depiction of the War of Wrath against Morgoth and the end of the First Age done well would be a license to print money, and it would deserve the cash. Done badly, it would be a travesty, but that's a permanent hazard. It has everything. It has action. It has adventure. It has an epic battle. It has romance too, and it could be considerably less forced than the movie treatment of Aragorn and Arwen, since Luthien Tinuviel directly participated in the recovery of the lone Silmaril to be returned to the Valar. I wouldn't mind at all if they did that. If they can refrain from further fucking rabbits.
Jesus H. Christ on a tauntaun - every movie in the series from Empire onwards has been nothing but a money grab. Hell, for that matter Star Wars itself was made for the sole and singular of generating a profit.
They should just do what the comic book guys do. Set the new ones in an alternate dimension, which is almost but not quite entirely unlike Star Wars. Then, they could do whatever they want to, the fans can keep their cherished memories and believe they came from the TRUE universe. To top it all off, they can have a movie where the two realities join forces to battle some inter-dimensional-something-or-other. At least if they mentioned such a thing it might get the whiny fanboys to simmer down a bit.
Celebrity worship is a poor substitute for Deity worship and costs more to boot.
They are going to need a bigger bikini.
Never answer an anonymous letter. - Yogi Berra
He took the time to log in,... he's trolling.
Who the hell actually logs in every time they visit /. ? I logged in months ago, and it just keeps me logged in between sessions.
Either way, shut the fuck up.
You can't violate his First Amendment rights like that. Who do you think you are, Samuel L Jackson?
If you think I voted for Trump because of this post, you're wrong. I voted for Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party. Again.
Sounds like ST Generations where they shoehorned in a old and fat kirk toasting marshmallows in for no real reason
these fans are expecting too much for Disney to follow all the post RotJ books, cannon or not...its fanboi mellodrama
it's a question of **expectations**
is it reasonable to expect Disney to know enough to keep the new films in line w/ cannon from *other films*?
YES
is it reasonable to expect Disney to obey cannon of *books* written long before their purchase of the franchise and never intended to be filmed?
NO
Thank you Dave Raggett
Am I the only one who finds a lot of the big action CGI stuff really boring? I mean a lot of the Marvel stuff has been good, Gravity was amazing, and there's other stuff that really makes good use of special effects. But it seems like there's a lot of movies that seem to live on long drawn out action sequences, 300, the new Star Trek films, the Star Wars prequels, the Hobbit. I just end up disinterested because I don't actually care about the characters.
I maintain that it isn't the ignorance of youth, the original Star Wars is good, maybe it was the melodrama or the simple story but I actually did care about the characters, that's why those simple action sequences are still riveting. I don't see a basic difference between the new Star Trek and the old new old Star Wars, sure the Star Wars had some cringe-worthy writing but a lot of good things do as well, the problem was they used spectacle to distract from the fact the story and characters weren't that interesting. They need less spectacle and bigger story, I'm just not sure Abrams is the one to save the franchise.
I stole this Sig
Over my entire life I have perhaps read 3 books twice. Silmarillion is one of them. You can dream away and fill in the story as much as you like. The only book I know that could be turned into 12 movies, that is for sure.
Only the government can violate First Amendment rights.
Maybe. However people seem loath to recall the significant plot holes the original movies had.
Anyway I think people were most fascinated with the *idea* of the universe. Keep those ideals in line, and I will still look forward to it. Actually making really good movies would be a nice change thought. You are right however JJ does have a "style" all his own, that I would call a formula (for money mostly). However there were elements that were done really well, like the first 10 min of Star Trek. They also cast very well. If they concentrate a bit more on some of the major elements of the story or character building and motivations I think it would go a long way, as his do seem to be a bit light in that department.
The major problem is that the viewing audience is a dichotomy. Most of the people he is targeting for the movies he makes (Transformers, Start Trek, Star Wars, etc...) are basically kids movies 12-18. However because all of the above are remakes of classic memorabilia we all grew up with, it ALSO has that audience of 30-45 year olds. Go figure the kids are sated with action and funky camera work, whereas the old guard want something a bit more. Hell 1,2,3 had the same problem with Lucas, selling it to kids and merchandising. Shit the originals did the same, and there was no base back then. Best call it just the Hollywood machine and be done with it.
Maybe they will come out with a new Serenity movie, that is one more aimed at adults.
I also wait for most comic movies to the dollar theater or Redhat. But sometimes I am pleasantly surpised if there is a creative story. For exmple the Nth remake of superman last year the backstory about Zor having good intentions, but msiguided, was novel.
Cause Star Trek and Into Darkness both cream Star Trek V
I agree on the first, but I just couldn't get over how unoriginal Into Darkness was. I hope Nicholas Meyer got some kind of compensation on account of him having written half of the script 30-odd years ago. Plus I have a special place in my heart for Star Trek V. Kirk interrupts God, for Kirk's sake!
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.