Star Wars Episode VIII director Rian Johnson is shown on the screen during a Disney fan event. (Photo : Getty Images / Image Group LA)
"Star Wars: Episode VIII" has officially wrapped up all production last Friday, after approximately five months of shooting in the Pinewood Studios in London. The news was announced by director Rian Johnson himself. The long process of post-production is set to begin.
Johnson made the announcement on the official Star Wars Twitter page by sharing a looped five-second video of the final clapperboard of the final shot. He also stated that the crew is moving forward with post-production, which would likely take some time to complete due to the special effects, sound design and editing.
The eighth installment of the "Star Wars" movies will break from the tradition of past episodes. Past sequels usually had a gap of at least one year in the storyline, from the end of the previous film to the next. Johnson revealed that this installment will begin right where the last film ended, saying "I didn't want to skip ahead," according to Fortune.
In the final scene of the last film, "Episode VII: The Force Awakens," Rey (Daisy Ridley) met an older Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) on top of a mountain after searching for him for quite some time. In the sequel, Rey is rumored to already begin her Jedi training under Skywalker.
The movie is centered around Rey and other elements of the Resistance, namely Finn (John Boyega), General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) and Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) as they fight against the Imperial First Order led by Leia and Han Solo's son Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and Captain Phasma (Gwendoline Christie). According to Johnson, the upcoming sequel will "get to the heart" of the characters and challenge them.
"Star Wars: Episode VIII" is set to be released on Dec. 15, 2017. However, "Star Wars" fans don't have to wait that long to get a little taste of the franchise. A stand-alone film, the first of three under the Disney franchise, will be shown on theaters Dec. 16 of this year. It is entitled "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story". The events in the film is prior to the first ever blockbuster, entitled "A New Hope."
