It’s nice to see some set photos for the upcoming Star Wars: Episode IX finally make their way online, and while those pics of Oscar Isaac and John Boyega may have been the most revealing so far, last week’s images of the Millennium Falcon in the woods of Black Park, England still left us with one or two questions to ponder. Namely, where exactly are they?
Answer: Somewhere new. At least, that’s what some fresh intel from Making Star Wars would suggest. Reportedly, vines are being hung up in this woodland region to give the set a more “tropical” look, distinguishing it from previous Star Wars forests like Endor and Takodana. But speaking of the latter, it’s also being said that the set is looking similar to a Takodana sequence that was cut from The Force Awakens.
So, what could this mean? Well, let’s consider what we’ve heard already. One thing we know for a fact is that General Leia will be making a return in next year’s movie via unused footage of Carrie Fisher from the last two episodes. This makes it highly plausible that Leia still has some leftover clips from the unseen Takodana sequence that will make it into the film.
However, if this is indeed the case, then this doesn’t necessarily mean a return to Maz Kanata’s home planet. Digital technology would likely allow Lucasfilm to transfer Fisher’s performance to a new setting, especially one that looks similar to the sets from Takodana. This mysterious new planet could be such a setting, implying that director J.J. Abrams may well be planning to integrate elements from the unused sequence into the upcoming sequel, while shooting new footage with the current cast on a set that looks much like the old Takodana set, only presumably more tropical.
This is all just speculation at this point, but we’ll find out what sort of spectacle Abrams and his crew have been putting together in the forests of Black Park when Star Wars: Episode IX comes out on December 20th, 2019.
