10 Interesting Behind The Scenes Facts About ‘The Rise Of Skywalker’
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Much like every film made, Star Wars Episode IX was borne by minds creative and passionate coupled with a will to see ideas birthed into our time and space. The film, praised or otherwise, does what all films do. It transports us to another galaxy where numerous possibilities we can only imagine happening. More magical is that this space fantasy is made in the real world, where production has its fair share of stories as well.
The Rise of Skywalker will turn 3 years old in December. But, of course, anytime is always a good time to have a refresher on trivia from behind the scenes.
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10. To Keep The Appearances of Han Solo and Sheev Palpatine Secret, They Were Assigned Codenames
Admit it or not, you, dear reader, had an inkling Han Solo would return if only to wave goodbye to the audience. So, yes, there was anticipation. Sheev, though was the gasp-inducing reveal. They also assigned alternate names for said characters to keep cast and crew from overtly divulging trade secrets. The Janitor and Trooper 13 are now part of Star Wars behind-the-scenes lore.
9. Matt Smith Was All Set To Be In The Film
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Who? The 11th Doctor. Late last year, Matt Smith confirmed he was informed he was in; but as fates changed, he never got to film a single scene (no legitimate leaked scenes have surfaced).
"We were close to me being in it, but then it just never quite happened," Smith revealed in an episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast. Smith remains secretive during the podcast and never divulges the role but teased that "it's a big thing, it was a big story detail. Like a transformative Star Wars story detail."
In George Lucas' days as Star Wars gatekeeper, no plot line would have been retconned, and Matt Smith's part will have passed into legend. Now that Disney holds the reins, this story may be rewritten to create a new plot line.
8. Before The Rise Of Skywalker, The Film Had Working Titles
The film had two working titles and one almost-title. Black Diamond was the first of two. Many have speculated if this was a reference to Rey or Ben, but maybe it was neither. The production team settled on trIXie. Note the stylized spelling and the reason becomes sound. Before Abrams, original director Colin Trevorrow reportedly titled the film a dramatic "Duel of The Fates." Connect this bit of trivia with the aforementioned Matt Smith revelation and speculate what a Trevorrow-directed film would have been.
7. Dominic Monaghan Is In The Film
J.J. Abrams, in the process of writing The Rise of Skywalker's script, loses a wager on a World Cup game. The result: Dominic Monaghan joins the cast. Landing the role by happenstance aside, Abrams informs Monaghan he has found a character that fits his age and sensibility. Beaumont Kin is a historian who abandons his academic career to become a Captain in The Resistance's intelligence division.
6. Warwick Davis Reprises His Role As Wicket
It was befitting then (and still holds true) to pay homage to the Ewok who helped topple the First Galactic Empire. Long-time Star Wars fans quickly recognized Wicket as he witnessed the destruction of the Sith armada, but Davis made sure every generation of Star Wars fans would remember Wicket W. Warrick. As a nod to his first appearance in Return of the Jedi, Davis returned Wicket's trademark head tilt on screen.
His movie child, Pommet Warrick, is endearing, portrayed by his real-life child, Harrison. But, in keeping with the family tradition, there is another. Warwick's daughter, Annabelle, also worked in front of and behind the scenes of the sequel trilogy and Solo: A Star Wars Story.
5. J.J. Abrams Casts His Friend, Greg Grunberg, And Keeps His Promise To His Friend
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J.J. Abrams created Lost, Felicity, and Alias. In addition, he directed The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker. Greg Grunberg appeared in Lost, Felicity, and Alias. In addition, he portrayed Snap Wexley in The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker.
Abrams has said he and Grunberg planned as kids to collaborate on making their own Star Wars movie. So when Abrams was finally given the opportunity to helm the first and last sequels, it was a no-brainer to cast his friend and fulfill their childhood plans.
4. Rey's Jedi Guides
At first viewing, only a few, if none, in the audience could have distinguished every Jedi who spoke to Rey during her confrontation with Palpatine. On subsequent viewings, a final count is 11 Jedi Masters and Knights spanning both the live-action films and Star Wars animation series could be tallied. Most will have recognized the 2 Skywalkers, Yoda, Kenobi, Windu, and Jinn. Readers may rely on this list to finally complete the roster for the other Jedis. Not in speaking order, these are the Jedis who also reassured Rey they've got her back (in brackets are the actors who spoke their lines):
- Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein)
- Kanan Jarrus, born Caleb Dume (Freddie Prinze, Jr.)
- Luminara Unduli (Olivia D'Abo)
- Aayla Secura (Jennifer Hale)
- Adi Gallia (Angelique Perrin)
To keep the set spoiler-free, Prinze disclosed none of his fellow voice actors knew who would be recording lines for the film.
3. Billie Lourd Stood In For Carrie Fisher
Billie Lourd was one of the actors who did double duty while filming The Rise of Skywalker. She was already portraying Resistance lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix when the decision was made to have her stand in for her mother, Carrie Fisher, instead of using their de-aging tech to film the flashback scene of Leia's Jedi training with her twin, Luke Skywalker.
2. Crew Members Physically Shook The crafts In The Pasaana Sand Chase
The green screen and CGI provided the visuals for the high-speed chase across Pasaana, while giant fans provided wind. The shaking of the craft Dameron and company were on was mainly muscle power, though. A BTS video from Entertainment Weekly proves crew members shook the crafts while filming the chase.
1. Patrick Williams Provides Boolio's Voice
This voice actor portraying this Ovissian mine overseer who just happened to have a leaked data file only spoke 3 lines (one of which is meme-worthy, you know the one), but his voice-acting resumé can easily have its own Wikipedia page. There's a reason why. Patrick Williams is Mark Hamill.
Trawl the Culture Slate information highway, and there will be more interesting facts about all things Star Wars.
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