News

Many of the greatest films of all time feature romantic stories and subplots about characters falling in love that add a level of emotional depth and resonance that can really make a movie shine. But not every movie needs romance in order to work, and sometimes forcing a subplot about two characters falling in love can actually hinder a movie's story.

Movies that are otherwise entertaining can be pushed off their axis by forcing a romance between characters whose chemistry doesn't really gel. And when a romantic encounter between two characters feels inorganic, it can throw an entire film out of whack.

The Star Wars Sequel Trilogy Didn't Earn This Romance Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

Directed by:

J.J. Abrams

Starring:

Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver

Romance between:

Rey and Kylo Ren

The Rise of Skywalker is one of the most disliked and troubled of the Star Wars movies,...

Yesterday, The Rise of Skywalker characters posters arrived. With a few missing exceptions. But one of those holes has been filled. Rose Tico now has her own character poster from The Rise of Skywalker. However, Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa still don't have their own. Disney and Lucasfilm sent out the character posters yesterday, but Tico was not originally included, though it is unclear why. It might have just been an easy mistake, but Star Wars fans took notice and wondered once again, 'Where's Rose?'. Some speculate that Rose may not play a big part in the action, but actress Kelly Marie Tran says she is intergral to the plot.

The Rise of Skywalker character posters include Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega), Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), Chewie (Joonas Suotamo), C-3Po (Anthony Daniels), R2-D2 (Jimmy Vee), Bb-8 (Brian Herring), Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams), Kylo Ren (Adam Driver...

With Lucasfilm being even more stingy than expected on the details of Star Wars: Episode IX, a lot of hopes are being pinned right now on this April’s Star Wars Celebration, which is widely predicted to see the premiere of the first proper trailer for J.J. Abrams’ upcoming trilogy-closer. But if the annual event wasn’t cause for enough hype already, some fans are taking the attendance of Ian McDiarmid as a sign that a certain Sheev Palpatine could be making a cameo in this December’s release.

McDiarmid’s inclusion was announced on the official Star Wars website, which issued the following statement:

“Ian McDiarmid, the actor who unforgettably played the galactic mastermind behind the rise of the Empire, transforming from the manipulative, scheming senator from Naboo into the ghastly cloaked figure of Darth Sidious, will join fans at Star Wars Celebration Chicago this spring.”

While many fans...

It looks like all of the droids get to wrap filming first on Star Wars 9. Puppeteer Brian Herring has revealed that Bb-8 has officially wrapped filming on the highly anticipated third installment in the latest trilogy. Anthony Daniels revealed earlier this week that he and C-3Po had finished their work, which has brought up speculation that it could be the last time that we see the golden droid on the big screen since Star Wars 9 will put an end to the Skywalker saga. Will it also be the last time we ever see Bb-8?

Brian Herring celebrated the end of his Star Wars 9 work by posting some behind-the-scenes pictures of Bb-8 from The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. The puppeteer is clearly grateful for his time spent on the set working with J.J. Abrams and crew, and really, who wouldn't be? There's a reason why Kevin Smith cries...

Via Twitter, Lucasfilm puppeteer Brian Herring has announced what many had already deemed to be common knowledge – Bb-8, everyone’s favorite little droid, will be steamrolling his way into Star Wars: Episode IX.

As spotted by ComicBook.com, Herring’s tweet makes mention of the fact that Bb-8 has wrapped his first day of shooting on the so-far untitled Episode IX.

Filming initially commenced last week, when writer-director J.J. Abrams took a moment to honor Carrie Fisher, who so tragically passed away in December of 2016 mid-way through The Last Jedi‘s own production. She’ll still be factored into the top-secret story of Episode IX – hell, word is her role is much bigger than we’ve been led to believe – though Abrams and co-writer Chris Terrio now face the difficult task of closing the book on Leia’s story.

Be that as it may, below you’ll find that status report from Brian Herring,...

Star Wars: The Last Jedi‘s been out for nearly a month now and so far, has been met with widespread critical acclaim. That said, there is a certain disquiet rumbling amongst a subset of the fandom due to the movie’s bold choices and unexpected turns. In contrast to the familiar, nostalgia-tinged The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi is keen to challenge our presumptions about the saga.

All that said, it’s still made with a lot of love for what has come before and as such features many a nod to the previous films in the franchise. There are some great obvious ones, for example, such as R2-D2 replaying Leia’s hologram message from A New Hope, the attack on Crait calling back to the Battle of Hoth and, last but not least, the poorly-kept secret that was Yoda’s cameo.

However, Episode VIII also features a...

Bb-8 is spilling it all!

The beloved droid stopped by People Now to dish on everything Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

Bb-8 said (beeped?) he loved getting the chance to meet Prince William and Harry on the red carpet at the London premiere of the film and that he might not get along with his evil counterpart Bb-9E. (Disclaimer: The People staff does not speak fluent droid and is likely making this all up.)

As for the best piece of advice fellow robot R2-D2 gave Bb-8?

We don’t really know, but it sounds like, “Don’t get blown up.

Bb-8 is back!

The beloved droid makes his return to the big screen in Star Wars: The Last Jedi — and he’s in the hot seat as he answers some of his young fans most burning questions. People Deputy Editor Jd Heyman helps Bb-8 out in this edition of Kids Interview.

Asked which Star Wars creature Bb-8 would most want as a pet, the droid answers (via Heyman), “Chewbacca, cause he’s nice to pet.” (Disclaimer: Heyman does not speak fluent droid and is likely making this all up.).

From what creature Bb-8 would want as a pet (Chewbacca) to...

In my recent Dragon Con Round-Up I shared that this year’s Dragon Con kick-started a new fascination with puppetry for me (which, if you can imagine, may someday even rival my obsession with voice actors!).

This was due to two panels I attended, Brian Henson’s Evolution of Puppetry, and The Puppetry of Star Wars’ Bb-8. Both were fantastic; and I found it just fascinating to watch the magical way in which the puppeteers, behind the scenes, bring the puppets to life. I was also fortunate to be able to ask Brian Henson some questions at a small press conference; and now, of course, I get to share all of that with you!

First we have a few clips from the Evolution of Puppetry panel which are just super fun. In one, Brian Henson demonstrates the Henson method of puppeteering with an actual puppet. It was delightful to be...

Time flies, doesn’t it? It seems like just yesterday I was watching Animaniacs Live, interviewing folks about Turtles and cartoons, seeing the latest in geek fashions, hanging out with American Gods, and chatting with the Kings of Con at Sdcc, not to mention chillin’ at Nerd HQ. And now suddenly it’s September, and I’ve since attended both the UK Discworld Convention and Dragon Con! Convention season: it really never stops, does it?

Despite my busy schedule, I don’t want to miss sharing any of the fantastic adventures I’ve been having with you; so first, let’s rewind to San Diego and reminisce about the summer party-party-parties, because they are a staple of Sdcc and deserve to be featured. Every year, I try to line up at least a couple of parties each night, because, let’s be frank, I just love a good party. (I...

Last week, Empire Magazine began sharing bits and pieces from it's extensive new issue on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which hits newsstands today. First, they showed us a gatefold cover that featured all of the new villains. Then they returned with a second cover that introduced the three new heroes. They also offered more insight into Knights of Ren's Kylo, played by Adam Driver, with a never-before-seen photo and some backstory. Now, they are offering up three more behind-the-scenes photos featuring John Boyega as Awol Stormtrooper and ball droid Bb-8, who has become a quick favorite with fans. About the robot's creation, concept designer Christian Alzmann explained more.

"J.J. wanted something rolling on a sphere, so I tried a lot of different designs developing that idea. He would give direction on the kinds of shapes to use, and that led to a personality for the droid. Of course,...

The droids in Star Wars are much more than simple automatons designed to fulfill a singular purpose and be disposable. Sure, maybe that.s what their manufactures inside of this movie world intended, but R2-D2 and C-3Po became integral parts of the team and even friends to the other heroes, not to mention characters beloved by fans. And it looks like Star Wars: The Force Awakens will continue this trend with the latest addition to the droid family, Bb-8, doing a great deal to find a place in our hearts. Like R2, Bb-8 is a feisty little bucket of bolts with all kinds of attitude and personality, and the production went to great lengths to make him come to life and convey emotion. Making sure Bb-8 performed appropriately was the responsibility of puppeteers Dave Chapman and Brian Herring. In an in depth new piece on StarWars.com, Herring...