‘Game of Thrones’ Star Joins ‘Star Wars Episode VII’

Via Slashfilm.com:

If you’re good with a sword and appeared on Game of Thrones, apparently there’s a fair shot you can end up in a galaxy far, far away. Months after Thrones star Gwendoline Christie joined the cast of J.J. Abrams‘ Star Wars Episode VII, she’s now joined by another cast member. Miltos Yerolemou, who played Syrio Forel, the season one swordsman mentor to Arya Stark, has reportedly joined the film in an unknown role. Read more about the Miltos Yerolemou Star Wars 7 news below.

The BBC broke the news of the late addition to casting, but Lucasfilm declined to comment.

Considering Yerolemou is a accomplished swordsman, everyone is assuming he’ll play a character that wields a lightsaber in the highly anticipated sequel. However, that’s not a guarantee. We all assume Andy Serkis is playing someone created in performance capture, too, but no one knows for sure. (Same goes for Daisy Ridley as a Solo and Lupita Nyong’o as a Sith. All assumptions.)

The BBC report does say, however, that “his character in Star Wars is not thought to be a major one.” That, too, is a safe assumption considering the film has been shooting for some time now and recently started back up after a brief hiatus. If he was important in this film, he’d likely have been on set already. Still, a minor role in Episode VII doesn’t mean a minor role in Star Wars moving ahead. Among the Star Wars rumors most people take to be true are that minor characters in Episode VII will be major characters in Episodes VIII and even IX. Plus, just because we’re hearing about the casting now doesn’t mean it just happened.

Again though, the safest bet here is that Yerolemou plays some kind of bad guy who uses a lightsaber or possibly some other kind of long weapon. Maybe we see his face, maybe we don’t, but we do know it would be difficult for any actor to turn down any role in what’s one of the most secretive and anticipated films of all time.

Star Wars Episode VII open December 18, 2015. As if you didn’t already know that.

 

Image from slashfilm.com

Hasbro Q&A Session at SDCC 2014 Video!

Yesterday, we had an opportunity to meet with William Rawley and Jeff Labovitz from Hasbro and ask them the questions our readers sent it, we got in over 80 questions but only had time to ask about a dozen of them.

Check out the video below and see what they had to say about the new Saga Legends and Mission Series lines, why the carded images have the word “Rebels” under them and some do not, about the 5 POA figures and the appeal of them for older collectors, female characters in the 3.75 lines, will there be a 1st day of issue carding for Rebels like there was for The Clone Wars, more Droid Factory Build-A-Droid astromech figures at Disney, how would you describe the items you are working on for Episode 7 and more!

Check it out below and a HUGE thanks to William and Jeff for the time! They also hint to more BIG things to come, it’ a must watch!

Boba Fett lives! Fett: 1 Sarlacc: 0

Boba Fett escapes his encounter with the Sarlacc Pit in ROTJ via Wookieepedia

Boba Fett escapes his encounter with the Sarlacc Pit in ROTJ via Wookieepedia

 

Boba Fett has arguably been one of the most favorite characters of ‘Star Wars’ fans since he first appeared in the lackluster ‘Star Wars Holiday Special.’ Hardcore fans know that Fett’s journey didn’t end with him falling in the Sarlacc pit in ‘Return of the Jedi.’ He would go on to become an integral part of the ‘Star Wars’ expanded universe. While he has appeared in a plethora of material in the expanded universe, there was always a small hint of doubt that he actually lived on. ‘Star Wars’ used to be broken into different levels of canon, and Fett’s adventures after ‘Return of the Jedi’ were never set in stone. Then, earlier this year, the expanded universe rebooted and was labeled “Legends.” This set the hundreds of novels, comic books, and other materiel in an “alternate universe” of sorts; and sealed the fate of many beloved characters.

 

Flash forward to today. J.W. Rinzler, a ‘Star Wars’ historian and writer known for his many books that chronicle the history of the franchise, conducted an “Ask Me Anything” session on social media site, Reddit. Rinzler was asked point-blank whether Boba Fett survived his apparent demise in ‘Return of the Jedi.’ His reply brings hope to the ‘Star Wars’ universe. “Yes, he does,” Rinzler stated, “I have been in meetings with George where he confirms that Fett survived. If it comes from George then it’s true!”

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SDCC Almost Here!

A week from today we will kick off our 2014 coverage of San Diego Comic Con with images and news from the show! We will be meeting with Gentle Giant, Sideshow, eFx, Kotboukiya, Hasbro, Qmx, Diamond and many others on our trip and want to make sure we ask them what YOU want to know!

Submit any questions you would like us to ask before 7/18 and we will do our best to get you an answer. Email them to Yodasnews@gmail.com with the subject like SDCC QUESTIONS.

We just got our 1 on 1 with Hasbro booked, which has been a hot topic since NYTF so be sure to send us all your Hasbro burning questions, and we will ask them for you! Click here to see our video 1-1 with them last year!

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Kevin Smith talks ‘Star Wars: Episode VII’

Lifelong ‘Star Wars’ fan and filmaker, Kevin Smith, made news recently when he was invited to the set of ‘Star Wars: Episode VII.’ Smith was given this rare, honorary experience last week and got to actually go on the set at Pinewood Studios. This weekend he attended the Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival in Switzerland and briefly talked about his experience during a Q&A session. One fan asked Smith, “What was it like being on-board the Millennium Falcon?” While much of what Smith experienced at Pinewood remains unknown ,due to the high secrecy of production and non-disclosure agreements, he went on to give an emotional eleven minute answer.

Smith began by telling the audience about how he was contacted by J.J. Abrams via email while they were filming in Abu Dhabi. Smith recounts the email fondly and says that Abrams wrote, “Hey man, how are you? I’ve been thinking about you, we’ve started shooting the movie. If your ever gonna be over in England why don’t you come by the set?” He went on to talk very passionately about how he transformed back into a kid upon arriving at the set. “What I saw, I absolutely loved. It was tactile — it was real. It wasn’t a series of fucking green screens and blue screens in which later on digital characters would be added. IT was there, it was happening. I saw old friends who I haven’t seen since my childhood, who aren’t really friends, but I love them more than some of my fucking relatives. I saw uniforms, I saw artillery that I haven’t seen since I was a kid. I saw them shooting an actual sequence in a set that is real. I walked across the set, there were explosions. And it looked like a shot right out of a Star Wars movie. I watched them do it four times, standing next to JJ.”

There a lots of other great parts to his response in the full video. Anyone familiar with Smith and his work, notably ‘Clerks,’ is aware of his passion for ‘Star Wars’ and its really inspirational to hear his thoughts on both Abrams and ‘Episode VII.’ Check out the full video below via Kevin Smith’s Livestream page, (the ‘Star Wars’ talk starts at minute marker 35). You can also check out Smith’s website where he shares his thoughts on all things in the geek realm, including ‘Star Wars,’ here.

STAR WARS EPISODE VII PRODUCTION UPDATE

Via StarWars.com:

At the end of last year Lucasfilm and Disney invited all young aspiring actors to attend an open casting call for roles in J.J Abrams’ Star Wars Episode VII. The casting calls spanned 11 cities across the US and UK and over 37,000 hopefuls attended, with a further 30,000 submitting applications online.

Having hunted high and low for young and undiscovered talent, the filmmakers are delighted to announce that two actors from the open call call have been cast.

Crystal Clarke is an American actress studying in Glasgow, UK, who has both stage and screen acting experience and is soon to be seen in her first feature,The Moon and the Sun (to be released in 2015). British actor Pip Andersen is a skilled practitioner of parkour, a discipline that involves propelling oneself through any given environment with incredible grace and agility. Pip recently demonstrated this remarkable skill in a Spider-Man ad for Sony.

“The Star Wars universe has always been about discovering and nurturing young talent and in casting Episode VII we wanted to remain absolutely faithful to this tradition. We are delighted that so many travelled to see us at the open casting calls and that we have been able to make Crystal and Pip a part of the film,” said producer and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy.

Meanwhile, principal photography continues at Pinewood Studios in London after wrapping on location in Abu Dhabi in May.

In August, the team will take a brief two-week hiatus while adjustments to the current production schedule are made as actor Harrison Ford recovers from a leg injury. Harrison is doing well and is looking forward to returning to the set soon. Shooting remains on track to wrap in the fall with the film scheduled for release on December 18, 2015.

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Daisy Ridley reportedly a “lead” in ‘Episode VII’

Screenshot via Spotlight.com

Screenshot via Spotlight.com

 

Spotlight, a “professional acting jobs and auditions” company, has some very revealing info about who the possible lead is in ‘Star Wars: Episode VII.’ The UK-based casting services company has been around since 1927 and contains resumes for over 60,000 amateur performers. Daisy Ridley, as most ‘Star Wars’ fans are aware, was cast earlier this year in an undisclosed role. Her resume on Spotlight was submitted and managed by her agent, Johnathan Arun. He credits her in ‘Star Wars: Episode VII’ as “LEAD.’

 

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Screenshot via Spotlight.com

 

While this hasn’t been confirmed by the other “Big Three” (Lucasfilm, Disney, or Bad Robot), fans should know this is a pretty legitimate source of information. These are professional resumes for performers and can’t be edited by anyone off the street such as other sites, like IMDb or Wikipedia. While some are claiming that Ridley’s representation might simply be polishing her resume, it’s not likely they would so flamboyantly twist the truth that way, on such a public forum.

What do you think? Will Ridley inherit one of the sacred lead roles in ‘Star Wars?’ Share your thoughts with us on Twitter. We can be found at @Chewbacca89 (Alex Rybak) and at @YodasNews (official Yoda’s News account).

Tom Cruise? In Star Wars? Could be…

Via Metro.co.uk:

Tom Cruise has been in talks for a role in Star Wars Episode 7, according to reports.

The actor is reportedly in line to make a cameo appearance in JJ Abrams’ blockbuster. Abrams is said to be keen to get the star involved as he ‘loves working with Tom whenever he gets the chance’, say The Sun. Plus, with star Harrison Ford out of action with a broken leg, there’s time for film bosses to create a part for the Edge Of Tomorrow star. The director produced Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and is producing Mission: Impossible 5, which is out in the same week as Star Wars 7 in December next year. If Tom agrees to the bit-part, he stands to make megabucks at the box office in 2015.

A film insider told The Sun: ‘Tom has been in London for over a week and met up with JJ and some other people from Star Wars over the weekend.

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