Star Wars Update: ‘Leaked’ Set Footage, Ford ‘Doing Well,’ Two New Cast Members
The weekend brought a wealth of Star Wars updates with news of two new cast members being added, as well as an update on Harrison Ford’s recovery. Plus, some leaked “footage” shows what it looks like to work on the set of the forthcoming flick.
Okay, it’s not really “leaked,” and it’s not really “footage,” and it’s not what you might call “real,” but it is very, very cool. YouTube user Frank Wunderlich uploaded this awesome footage that imagines what it might be like if the Star Wars’ imperial machines of war were actually walking free in an earth setting. Upon seeing the footage, we’ve got to say that those AT-ATs look even easier to trip than they were in the original Star Wars trilogy.
In terms of real, actual, this-happened news in the forthcoming Star Wars trilogy, production seems to be proceeding apace. Variety reports that Harrison Ford is “doing well” after having broken his leg while on set. Production will pause on Star Wars Episode VII for two weeks in August “while adjustments to the current production schedule are made.”
The Star Wars universe also gained two new characters recently. Disney announced on Sunday that Crystal Clarke and Pip Anderson have been added to the cast. The two are relative unknowns, which fits in quite well with the history of Star Wars, which relied on lesser-known talent in order to fill the roles that are now nearly universally known.
Disney’s release didn’t specify what roles the two will play in the next Star Wars film. A November casting call, though, did specify that Star Wars was looking for a “beautiful, smart, and athletic” 17-to-18-year-old woman and a “handsome, smart, and athletic” 19-to-23-year-old man.
Since news emerged that Disney would be putting out more Star Wars movies, speculation has run wild on just who would be in what roles, who would survive and who would die.
In June, news broke that Lupita Nyong’o had joined the cast of Episode VII. The news came with Lupita experiencing a wave of popularity following her Oscar win for Best Supporting Actress. Gwendoline Christie, who plays Brienne of Tarth in the hit series Game of Thrones, has also been added to the production.
Star Wars: Episode VII is still on track for a December 18, 2015 release. The intervening months will, no doubt, see leak after leak hinting at what will happen in the J.J. Abrams-helmed Star Wars. Hopefully, one or two of those leaks winds up as cool as the footage above.
