As the internet waits to find out if there’s any truth to the rumors that a Star Wars: Episode IX teaser – or at least a behind-the-scenes featurette – will be dropping by Christmas, fans looking for other Star Wars-related ways to keep themselves occupied may find much to interest them in the various other reports that have made the rounds lately, including a recent account from Making Star Wars which suggests that the First Order will be drawing on the services of a new kind of trooper.
The post from earlier this month draws on information that was allegedly relayed to the site from people they’ve spoken to at “Pinewood Studios, various production offices, and those that attended licensee marketing meetings and presentations.” And among the details posited in the piece is that J.J. Abrams’ upcoming film will include an “elite” trooper that’s been summarized as a red Stormtrooper with black stripes, albeit with a different helmet design.
The piece also specifies that the trooper’s outfit is not identical to that of the red pilots seen in Star Wars Resistance, though it may still be a pilot uniform regardless, and might have even been developed at the same time as its animated counterpart. What’s more, the trooper has been compared to Elrik Vonreg from the aforementioned show, with the report going as far as to suggest that the First Order pilot’s appearance might be an unused design for the Episode IX soldier.
It’s a plausible enough claim, if one that still awaits confirmation, and after Rogue One: A Star Wars Story introduced death troopers to this galaxy back in 2016, Lucasfilm may well be looking to expand the diversity of the soldiers in its saga once more. We’ll find out for sure when Star Wars: Episode IX hits theaters on December 20th, 2019.
