You didn’t thinkStar Wars: The Force Awakenswas going to arrive in theaters with little to no fanfare did you?Disney and Lucasfilmare pulling out all the stops for this first Star Wars sequel in over ten years. And it’s going to be a big party. Directed byJ.J. Abramsand starringJohn Boyega,Daisy RidleyandOscar Isaac, the7th installmentin theSkywalker family sagais going to have its world premiere in Los Angeles on December 14. Then, a number of star-studded premiers will happen around the world.
These premieres will all be quite massive. After showing on the big screen for the first time anywhere in Los Angeles, all participating cast and crew will jump into the Millennium Falcon and hit light speed for London. The rest of the locations have yet to be revealed. But it is said that the Los Angeles premiere will be one of the biggest red carpet events in history. Executives, agents and journalists from all over Hollywood are already jockeying to line up their tickets and get a position on the press line.
Disney and Lucasfilm are intent on keeping the film’s secrets in place until it plays out on screens across America on opening day, December 18. That means there will be minimal screenings for press, along with the cast and crew, leading up to the premiere. While various members of the cast and crew have appeared at several conventions, including Comic-Con 2015 and D23, the Los Angeles premiere will be the first time that the entire cast and crew is brought together in a public forum, with original cast membersCarrie Fisher,Harrison Ford,Mark Hamillset to appear alongside the newcomers, some of which have not made any public appearances, such asMax von SydowandLupita Nyong’o. Others who have appeared at various Q&As, such asAdam DriveranDomhnall Gleesonwill also be in attendance, making this a once in a lifetime event.
Though, at this time, no one has been officially confirmed to appear. The premiere, which has not announced a venue, will also likely bring out an army of Star Wars fans hoping to catch a glimpse of the stars both old and new. It is speculated that the Los Angeles premiere will be one of the hardest Hollywood events to ever get into unless you are somehow directly associated with the production. And event then, it sounds like a lot of family and friends are going to be left on the sidelines.
Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hopehad its world premiere in May, 1977 at Hollywood’s Chinese Theater where it wasn’t quite the circus the premiere forStar Wars: The Force Awakenswill surely turn out to be. The last Star Wars movie to have a Los Angeles premiere wasStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sithin May, 2005. It debuted at the Mann Village Theater in Westwood. That premiere was set up to benefit the charity Artists for a New South Africa. WhileStar Wars: The Force Awakenshas raised a lot of money for UNICEF’s Force for Change program, it isn’t mentioned if that will tie into this upcoming event in December. WhileStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sithmay have been the last live-action movie to hold a red carpet premiere, the animated feature filmStar Wars: The Clone Warsdebuted at the Egyptian Theater in August of 2008. So, who’s camping out this time around?
