It’s safe to say that fans have already spotted a bit of a theme.
The Force Awakens seemed to bear a rather startling resemblance to A New Hope and early reports and rumours (and some whinges) have already suggested that The Last Jedi will follow The Empire Strikes Back.
George Lucas long ago addressed this issue as the idea that the universe and the Force itself operate on repeating ripples. In the same way that history repeats itself, teh Force, it is suggested, is simply seeking a way to correct imbaance and will keep trying until it succeeds.
Does this mean that Episode 9 will also be a retread of The Empire Strikes Back?
There has also been concern expressed that JJ Abrams is too much of a “safe choice” as the director. His Episode 7 was a strong and assured smash hit, but took few risks.
In a new interview Abrams promised that everything will change will Episode 9 and won’t just rest on the past successes and content of teh previous movies.
He said: “We can’t just revel in that; we have to go elsewhere.”
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Abrams told the BBC: “It’s certainly something that I’m aware of now working on Episode IX – coming back into this world after having done Episode VII.
“I feel like we need to approach this with the same excitement that we had when we were kids, loving what these movies were. And at the same time, we have to take them places that they haven’t gone, and that’s sort of our responsibility.”
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With the path seemingly already set for another Skywalker family climax, it’s hard to see how much Abrams can change.
He also admitted in another interview that the final movie in this trilogy is also the culmination of all nine in the saga.
As long as there are no Ewoks, it is likely that fans will be happy however (and however familiar) his conclusion turns out to be.