(L-R) Actors Oscar Isaac, John Boyega, Lupita Nyong'o, Daisy Ridley, director J.J. Abrams, actor Harrison Ford and Chairman of the Walt Disney Studios Alan Horn at Disney's D23 EXPO 2015 in Anaheim, Calif. (Photo : Getty Images/ Jesse Grant)
Lucasfilm has announced that the title for "Star Wars Episode VIII." The sequel to 2015's "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" is now officially called "Star Wars: The Last Jedi."
The announcement was first released on the official "Star Wars" website, along with the movie's logo. The site also refers to the film as part of the "Skywalker Saga" instead of referring to it as a numbered entry in the franchise, a trend that started with "The Force Awakens."
Unlike previous films in the franchise, the font in the title logo is presented in red instead of yellow. This was only done once before, for "Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith," indicating the film is going to have a dark tone.
"The Last Jedi" has been used before, specifically in the opening crawl of "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" as a description for Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). This would indicate that the movie's title is a reference to his character, /Film reported.
However, the term "Jedi" can be used for both singular and plural terms and it is also possible that "The Last Jedi" is a reference to both Skywalker and Rey (Daisy Ridley). In "The Force Awakens" Rey managed to find Skywalker and it is speculated she will undergo Jedi training with him as her mentor.
"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" will see the return of Luke Skywalker, Rey, Finn (John Boyega), Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and General Leia (Carrie Fisher). The film will also be Fisher's last performance in the series following her recent passing.
The film is written and directed by Rian Johnson. Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy serves as producer alongside Ram Bergman. "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" director J.J. Abrams is signed on as executive producer along with Tom Karnowski and Jason McGatlin.
"Star Wars: The Last Jedi" releases this Dec. 15. The official trailer for the previous film in the Skywalker Saga, "The Force Awakens," can be viewed below:
