It was a simpler time back in 2015, when all Star Wars fan cared about was how director J.J. Abrams was going to continue the stories of George Lucas' original trilogy. The plan ended up being easier than one would've expected, and gave us a pretty safe story reminiscent of A New Hope that left fans happy while some critics felt it was too predictable. Rian Johnson took those criticisms to heart, and decided to take some big risks in The Last Jedi that led to some major backlash from fans. With its original director Colin Trevorrow having departed the project, Abrams is now back at the helm for the finale of the trilogy he started. Now all of us have been left guessing where the franchise will go from here.
As one would expect, pretty much everything about Episode IX has been kept under wraps minus some additions to the cast. Up until this point we had no idea who some of these new cast members would be playing, but lucky for us an apparent promotional poster and character shots from the movie have leaked online thanks to Making Star Wars. We see our main trio of Poe, Finn, and Rey all back with new updated looks in the poster. There's a mysterious new alien, female character, and possible bounty hunter. There's also the surprising addition of Chewbacca's arrow in C-3PO's hands, which might suggest the droid will get in on the action this time around. But there's some other key additions that have caught fans attentions, specifically in the larger poster.
 |
| The leaked promotional poster for Episode 9 |
For one thing we see Kylo Ren and behind him the Knights of Ren, a group that was teased in the Force Awakens but were no where to be found in Last Jedi. The Knights of Ren was a concept that had many fans excited, and seemed to have been a group similar with an ideology similar to Ben Solo's whose identities and abilities have been shrouded in mystery. This could already be a major influence of having Abrams once again involved and being able to give closure to the storylines he started in his first film. We also get a new alien character and droid that seems to be partnered with BB-8. The alien may actually have changed in concept since this poster was created, as its been said its drastically different from the costume that was used for the character on set.
 |
| Character designs for Lando, Chewbacca, Rey, Poe, Finn, Zorii, and Jannah |
We also see the updated design for the older Lando Calrissian, who we know is confirmed to make his long awaited return in Episode 9. There's a woman behind Chewbacca on the poster who is a new character named Jannah and has been speculated by some fans to possibly be Lando's daughter. There's also the new character with a red costume and helmet that is rumored to be the character Keri Russell is playing named Zorii, and her look is very reminiscent of past bounty hunters in the Star Wars series. There's been some confusion as to why Carrie Fisher's Leia is not featured on the poster despite the studio confirming she will still be in the movie despite her passing, so this may be hinting at her having a much smaller role in the plot.
So what do you think of the leaked Star Wars: Episode 9 images? Are you happy with the characters new designs? Are you glad we're finally going to get to see the Knights of Ren? Let us know below!
