The release of the first trailer for Star Wars: Episode IX is sure to generate a lot of headlines. For one thing, the franchise is now at the centre of some half-baked culture war, while Star Wars also has something to prove after the flop of Solo: A Star Wars Story. Plus, you can be sure that many people will be scrutinizing every frame of the resurrected Carrie Fisher. Beyond all that, though, it’s also the finale of the trilogy and the final chapter in the nine-film Skywalker saga. With all that to accomplish, it would be very nice to see a preview or at minimum learn the film’s official title sometime soon.
Well, according to rumors that have been flying around, we’re going to get just that during the Chicago Star Wars Celebration. The event kicks off on April 11th, with an Episode IX panel taking place at 11am on Friday, April 12th. Industry watchers have been keeping an eye on the panel for a while, assuming that the event might unveil the first formal trailer for the movie. But that’s not all, as The Express is reporting that Disney and Lucasfilm are actually preparing two trailers: one for the Celebration and the other to be placed before fellow Mouse House properties Avengers: Endgame and The Lion King.
In addition to that, there’s also rumors that the trailers will focus on the legacy characters of Luke Skywalker, General Leia and Lando Calrissian, with the supposed reasoning being that they want to make sure fans of the Original Trilogy feel engaged with them. That’s certainly intriguing to hear, and while I think the news that the first trailer will drop on April 12th stands a good chance of being true, I don’t think it’ll focus on the older characters.
For one thing, this new trilogy simply isn’t their story: it’s Rey, Finn, Poe and of course Kylo Ren’s, and most viewers are eager to find out what becomes of them. Secondly, Disney has repeatedly shown that they want to win over new Star Wars fans rather than placate older ones who, let’s face it, will be going to see this movie anyway. I guess we’ll find out on the 12th though whether this insider knowledge is true or not.
