WithRogue Oneset to hit theaters in a few days, Disney recently held a huge press junket for the film in San Francisco. UnlikeStar Wars: The Force Awakenswhere they had us conduct interviews with the cast without seeing anything but the trailers, sinceRogue Oneinvolves new characters and takes place before the events ofStar Wars: A New Hope, Disney showed us almost thirty minutes of the film at Skywalker Ranch so reporters could learn more about the story and characters. Like I said on Twitter and during a Facebook Live chat (which you canwatch here), the footage was fantastic and left all of us wanting more.
Without going into spoiler territory, the thing that made me most excited is how even thoughRogue Onetakes place before the events ofEpisode IV, it feels completely unique and original and looks and feels like a war movie that happens to take place in theStar Warsuniverse. In the footage we saw plenty of scenes showing how the Empire is trying to take control of the universe and the brutality that happens when you try and resist. Part of the reason it feels like a war movie is because that’s what directorGareth Edwardsset out to make. As you may see himexplain in this interview, he shotRogue Onelike a documentary embedded in a war zone. And after seeing the footage, I can say he succeeded.
During my interview withMads MikkelsenandBen Mendelsohnthey talked about how much Lucasfilm and the story group told them about their characters' backstories, what makesRogue Onedifferent from all the otherStar Warsfilms, getting to shoot in Iceland, deleted scenes, and more.
Finally, if you’d like to know what people thought aboutRogueOneafter the world premiere Saturday night in Hollywood,click here. Look for ourRogue Onereview tomorrow morning.
Mads Mikkelsen and Ben Mendelsohn:
