Star Wars Bits: Comic-Con, Amy Schumer, Jakku, Han Solo, George Lucas At D23 And More
The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next the power ofStar Wars Bits. This week’s news from a galaxy far, far away includes the following:
Header image: GQ photoshoot with Amy Schumer (find more on the second page)
Some details on what happened in theStar Warsuniverse afterReturn of the Jedihave surfaced thanks to a new rundown fromMakingStarWars.net. They include facts on the state of the Empire following the destruction of the Death Star, theBattle of Jakku, and much more. This information is supposedly reliable, and may contain spoilers forThe Force Awakens, so beware if you decide to read.
Harrison Fordhad some pretty valuable advice to his new, young Star Wars co-stars, pulled specifically from his own experience after playing Han Solo in the originalStar Warstrilogy. He makes some funny little remarks here and there, but he does explain the genuine advice he gave toDaisy Ridleyspecifically:
Speaking of Han Solo, at the surpriseStar Warsconcert, Harrison Ford jokingly used a lightsaber as a cane:
And Carrie Fisher also had some lightsaber action of her own:
New details on where we findHan SoloandChewbaccainStar Wars: The Force Awakenshave surfaced over atMakingStarWars.net, including some potential information about the state of theMillennium Falcon. Again, beware of spoiler forThe Force Awakensif you go read the article.
The soon to be favorite new droid fromStar Wars: The Force Awakensis featured on the cover ofMakemagazine for their August/September 2015 issue. Here’s what you’ll find in the magazine featuringBB-8:
“Move over R2D2! BB-8, the adorable new Star Wars droid, stole the show when it rolled on stage at this year’s Star Wars Celebration. InMake:Vol. 46 we show you how three Makers approached building their very own working BB-8 bots, and how you can build one, too!”
Check out the cover image with the little ball droid atMakingStarWars.net.
If you’re hungry for more of what the stars ofStar Wars: The Force Awakenshad to say atComic-Con, several quick interviews are now available online withJ.J. Abrams, Kathleen Kennedy, Lawrence Kasdan, Harrison Ford, Gwendoline Christie, Adam Driver, Domhnall Gleeson, John Boyega, Daisy RidleyandOscar Isaac. We’ve included a small batch of them right here:
George Lucas is going to be honored at D23 in August with The Disney Legend Award. Bob Iger, Disney Chairman and CEO says, “The Disney Legend Award is our highest honor, and we are incredibly proud to recognize these eight talented individuals who have contributed so much to the world of entertainment and the Disney legacy. Their vision and dedication to their work have brought joy to audiences around the globe and earned them a place in Disney history.
Each honoree receives a two-foot-tall bronze Disney Legends sculpture that signifies the imagination, creativity, and magic they have brought to the Company. Disney Legends Award recipients will also participate in a handprint ceremony at the end of the event, and their bronzed prints will be displayed in the Disney Legends Plaza at the Company’s Burbank headquarters.
And speaking of George Lucas, here’s a tease of a Science Channel special on ILM:
Raiders, Raptors, and Rebels: Behind the Magic of ILMairs on July 19th.
In case you didn’t know, there was a surpriseStar WarsconcertatComic-Confor everyone in Hall H for theStar Warspanel on Friday, July 10th. However, that left the convention venue completely empty for the next panel, which just happened to be massive Star Wars fanKevin Smith’s annual evening panel, this time promoting his forthcoming movieYoga Hosers. A lot of people thought it was a dick move, and Smith himself lamented his position on Twitter:
Oh God. Backstage at#HallH.@starwarspanel just invited 6.5k audience to watch a Star Wars concert. Everyone left.pic.twitter.com/kIzfFhWzfY
— KevinSmith (@ThatKevinSmith)June 16, 2025
I feel a grave disturbance in the Force. As if six thousand people were suddenly silenced by a free concert. Might have to cancel my panel.
But thankfully,J.J Abramsapologized afterwards at Comic-Con saying, “Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I feel like Darth Vader.” And then according to Smith’s Hollywood Babble-On podcast (viaNerd Bastards), Abrams also sent an e-mail saying, “I’m mortified, I’m fucking like I would never do that to anyone, let alone somebody I adore, like you.” So it sounds like there’s no hard feelings.
In the behind the scenes sizzle reel forStar Wars: The Force Awakens, you’ll find a lot of practical sets, vehicles and creatures being shown off. And the panel at Comic-Con for the film really hit home the authenticity and tangible feel they wanted to have for this new Star Wars movie. Now word from production designer Darren Gilford (Oblivion) explains to Thompson on Hollywood a bit of how important it was for J.J. Abrams to make that happen:
“J.J.’s mandate from day one was authenticity and being as true to the original trilogy as possible. And he felt the prequels were flawed by the fact that they had every [CG] tool known to mankind and used everything at their disposal. I use the metaphor of disco when the synthesizer came about and everyone was using it in any way possible. And I think J.J. wanted to reconnect with how the original films were made.”
The efforts to do this included going back and examining how certain effects and shots were pulled off back in the 1970s when George Lucas had limited resources at his disposal, forcing him to get creative with his filmmaking. Gilford explained, “We studied the Death Star set and how John Barry and Norman Reynolds designed [it] to be multi-purpose, the kind of anywhere but everywhere within the Death Star. And that was the motivation of how we did our ‘Star Wars’ base.”
For more from Gilford,read the full article over here.
Amy Schumergets a little dirty withStar Warsin a photoshoot fromGQ. Check out more photos, including Schumer doing some provactive things with a lightsaber andC-3PO’s fingers in her mouthright over here.
Some more updates on Star Wars Battlefront have surfacedthanks to a blog postfrom Mathew Everett, the senior product manager and community liaison for DICE and EA. New details include a lack of split-screen playing on PC and also word that the Y-Wings will not be available to be flown by players like the X-Wings. That’s a bummer. Find out more atCinemaBlend.
Star Wars: Rogue OnewriterGary Whitta(pictured right with director Gareth Edwards) wrote a whole editorial about the awesome experience that wasStar WarsatComic-Conthis year, from the panel to the surprise concert for fans, which Whitta attended himself, wielding a lightsaber and everything. In addition to reading our own recap of the event, check out Whitta’sfond remembrance of the event over here too.
And if you want to hear Warsfrom Whitta, check out IGN’s interview with him:
That’s it for this edition of Star Wars Bits. Come back for more soon!
