Stop what you’re doing, for here’s the first look at the official Episode VII (2015) toys. For any other movie that would mean a whole lot of nothing, but because this is Star Wars, the grand-daddy of toy collectibles among grown men, it matters a great deal. That’s why photos of little plastic Stormtroopers, six months before the release of the movie, are even remotely newsworthy. Not sure how to explain the make-up line.
Oh, and by the way, for those of you who thought Han Solo was a stand-up guy (a money-grubbing smuggler who definitely shot first), then think again. That’s according to Marvel’s new Star Wars comics (Marvel also make comics), which focus on events between Epsiodes IV (1977) and V (1980). In this edition, (Ridin’) Solo has a wife he deserted to gallivant across the solar system. You could say Princess Leia is one in a long line of gallivants. And because Disney has decreed this series to be canonical, that means it actually happened. Not in real life, but it could be incorporated into the upcoming movie, so the next best thing.
That’s a galaxy far, far away taken care of. In the here and now, director Josh Trank has responded to claims that he was dropped from the upcoming Boba Fett movie because of his meltdown on the set of Fantastic Four (2015), along with his dogs getting all rock and roll in the house the studio rented for him. He says both of those things aren’t true, of course. Though, crazier things have happened.
Finally, Academy Award Winner Forest Whitaker has joined the cast of Rogue One (2016), the spin off film about a crew of rebels who try to steal plans for the Death Star. It is not yet known whether he will join Australian actor Ben Mendehlson in villainy, or crew up with Felicity Jones, Diego Luna and Riz Ahmed. For their sake, I hope he is one of the rebels.
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