Check Out This Shot Produced Late For 'The Rise Of Skywalker'
Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker came out in theaters at the end of 2019, before the world was turned on its head in 2020. As the last movie in the most recent Star Wars trilogy, it was a satisfying end of an era for some. It came out as a new age of Star Wars series releasing on the fledgling Disney+ platform began. One of the final scenes of the movie brought back a moment of nostalgia for the audience. Emperor Palpatine is defeated (hopefully for the last time) on Exegol. His great military forces fall around the galaxy. Star Destroyers plummet over Bespin, Endor, and Jakku in a symbolic representation of the First Order’s collapse. The seamless composition of the scene must have been planned by the production team for months to be able to evoke so much emotion within some of us.
However, it was recently revealed that some particular shots were added to The Rise of Skywalker at the last moment. James Clyne, concept artist and designer for Industrial Light & Magic and Lucasfilm, posted a familiar picture on his Instagram.
This “quick montage” was created in only a day. Yet its impact remained with fans for much longer. The impressive visuals reminded fans of the end of Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi - The Special Edition, when the camera pans to celebration scenes on Bespin, Coruscant, and Tatooine, and Endor (The celebration scene on Naboo would be added in the 2004 DVD release.) Fireworks are set off. Confetti is thrown up in the air. Citizens cheer at the end of the oppressive Galactic Empire. The whole galaxy is celebrating as the original Star Wars trilogy comes to a close. The celebration scene in The Rise of Skywalker mirrors the same sequence when we once again revisit Bespin and Endor. Jakku replaces the desert planet Tatooine, which is probably not included in the celebration scene because it is in the spotlight very shortly in the epilogue that follows.
Celebration on Bespin in Return of the Jedi. Note the similar color scheme.
The denouement of the sequel trilogy is effective in ushering in the end of an era. In The Rise of Skywalker, old and new fans see the return of beloved characters like Lando Calrissian, Wedge Antilles, Nien Nunb, and even Wicket Warrick, paying homage to the “old guard.” In the very last scene, Rey returns to the Lars family's moisture farm on Tatooine. When the old lady asks her name, she proudly says “Rey Skywalker.” "The Force Theme" swells as she and BB-8 watch the twin suns rise in the distance, and the movie comes to a satisfying end. This moment harkens back to the beginning of it all in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, when the same "Force Theme" plays as the bright-eyed 19-year-old Luke Skywalker (now a Force ghost during the final chapter) watches the same twin suns set. As the old chapter comes to a close, we look forward to the coming of the new that follows the rise of the twin suns and of the Skywalker name.
In Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens, we discover that evil does not end at the Battle of Endor. While celebration occurs around the galaxy in the open, a sinister force lurks in the darkness. The First Order would eventually rise from the residual remains of the Empire. Mirroring Return of the Jedi, maybe the Battle of Exegol is not the end. Perhaps a new antagonist could replace the First Order and the Empire after the celebrations fade away. The Republic may once again become complacent in peacetime, and lower its guard. An unseen power could inevitably return. It might be a different Dark Lord of the Sith. It might be Palpatine again. It might even be a novel force from beyond the known reaches of this galaxy that no one has ever seen or heard of before...
Source(s): CinemaBlend