Cue the Imperial March.
Thursday, June 23, 2016 at 12:30PM Daddy's back!
One of the most iconic characters of all time is set to return to the big screen. Darth Vader returns to cinemas when Rogue One hits on December 16th. But do you sense a disturbance in the force? A few questions get raised here. Was Darth Vader added in the reshoots when the studio was reportedly in panic? Perhaps the biggest question of all is: do we need to see Darth Vader again?
It would be surprising not to have Darth Vader mentioned at all as he is a very large character in the universe at that time this new (old) story takes place, but to appear on screen is a huge moment to promise. Audiences will return just to see this character again but isn't that, perhaps, detrimental to the larger revival of the franchise. Part of the success of The Force Awakens was the way it balanced nostalgia whilst shaping a new path. It ensured Vader cast a dark shadow, and his absence was felt which is a successful use of nostalgia but not overkill.
Have we already spied Darth Vader in the Rogue One trailer?
Vader has appeared frequently in the animated TV series but the big screen where he’s the big bad is another thing. Still a tip of the hat to the never ending successful Star Wars PR machine. They reveal only that Darth Vader will reappear, and millions of voices cry out in glee. But do you find the lack of originality disturbing?
Reader Comments (4)
" Was Darth Vader added in the reshoots when the studio was reportedly in panic?"
If that's Vader in the trailer than he was already in the movie before the reshoots.
Well of course he has to be in it if it's set in that time period. I really doubt the reshoots were to add him, Disney would never let them make a Star Wars movie set right before the original and not have Darth Vader in it. I believe that whole reshoots thing was blown out of proportion anyways. The release date hasn't changed.
Disney is probably going to test the waters slowly, but I hope eventually they will have Star Wars stories set many years after or before the current saga. Either way, I'm definitely looking forward to his return. He will be the only returning major character it seems, all the others will be new.
I enjoyed all of the Star Wars in-jokes in this post; good stuff.
Rumors of Vader appearing in Rogue One have been going around since they first announced Rogue One, so I'm more happy to have it confirmed then I am surprised. I wish The Emperor would also make an appearance but that seems unlikely.
Ryan - I definitely think we'll get some stuff years (centuries?) before the current saga because they certainly have the material. However, since I firmly believe they'll be making Episodes 10-12 with the current cast, I doubt we'll get stuff too far into the future. I certainly wouldn't complain if we did, though.