‘Star Wars’ Offers Wealth Of Musical, Storyline Possibilities — At Least, From A Fan Perspective

Star Wars: The Force Awakens has not even been in theaters for a full month, and yet the internet is still going insane for the possibilities that the soundtrack and the movie itself offers for future films in the series.

Alex Ross, a writer for The New Yorker, suggested that the soundtrack for Star Wars: The Force Awakens may well be yet another opportunity for composer John Williams to add to his substantial list of Academy Award nominations. After Walt Disney, John Williams is the second most nominated person; if he is nominated for his work on the score for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, he will have an astonishing 50 nominations for the Academy Awards alone. All told, Williams has five Academy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, seven British Academy Film Awards, and 22 Grammy Awards in his awards display.

Ross said that Williams has become “a sound, a brand” as a result of his work on Star Wars, and said that the new soundtrack actually mirrors some of the original Star Wars themes, in addition to echoing the Star Wars experience as a whole.

A part of the Star Wars fan base are also theorizing that Star Wars: The Force Awakens may be preparing audiences for a new sort of relationship — this time, between the two lead males. Pink News reports that some fans are hopeful that there might be a romance brewing between Finn and Poe Dameron. This would not technically be the first gay relationship in the Star Wars universe; in the 2003 video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, there was a lesbian Jedi by the name of Juhani.

Chuck Wendig, the author of Star Wars: Aftermath, a novel which examined life in the immediate aftermath of the events of Return of the Jedi, also had choice words for those who might not receive the idea of homosexual characters in Star Wars well.

Pink News reported that Wendig had a ready response for those “fans” who reacted poorly to the thought of a homosexual character in the Star Wars universe. Star Wars: Aftermath has a character named Sinjir Rath Velus, an Imperial turncoat who works with the Rebellion, and it is revealed that Velus is gay when he rebuffs a female character.

Some Amazon reviewers claimed that they were not happy with the inclusion of a homosexual character in Star Wars: Aftermath.

“I also don’t like the inclusion of so many gay characters because my personal opinion is that homosexuality is not normal,” Amazon user “Giorgio” wrote.

Wendig took on “Giorgio” and the other critics, much to the relief of the Star Wars fans that are eager to see the franchise explore the prospects of a homosexual relationship, such as the one some segments of the Star Wars fan base is hoping writers will develop between Finn and Poe.

Telegraph writer Helen O’Hara questioned in a recent article whether Disney would be brave enough to make X-wing pilot Poe gay. She acknowledged, however, that the fan base pushing for a gay relationship between Poe and Finn to develop is also exercising a tendency that audiences tend to have to think that all strong male relationships must develop into something more intense. Of course, this is a dangerous belief to hang on to, but it is one that is definitely getting some traction.

O’Hara posits that should Disney take a risk and make Poe a gay character, it would make Star Wars the first major film franchise to make such a decision.

“If Poe were to be gay, it would be a true landmark, and Star Wars would be the first major Hollywood franchise to have a central, heroic gay character,” she says.

Whether Star Wars is planning on a relationship between Finn and Poe or not, there will definitely be more theories that continue to develop as anticipation now builds for the next film, due out in about 17 months.

[Feature Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images]