Bad news, friends. Lucasfilm just announced that “Star Wars: Episode VIII” has been pushed back. Get out your blankets and your ear muffs, because it”s gonna be another cold one.
The new date is December 15, 2017 instead of the balmy summer slot of May 26, 2017. In an official press release, Lucasfilm explained the change:
Star Wars: Episode VIII, originally scheduled for release on May 26, 2017, will now debut on December 15, 2017. The move follows the extraordinary success of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which was the first Star Wars movie to premiere in December.
You can”t REALLY blame them. As the old saying goes, “If it ain”t broke, don”t fix it.” There were all kinds of naysayers right up to the release of “The Force Awakens” who thought it was a mistake to drop the film in mid-December. No one sees an action movie in the winter! That”s a time for Oscar contenders and movies the studios want to quietly let out to pasture.
But it turns out a love of Star Wars knows no season. And now it”ll be a holiday tradition to head to the theater with your extended family to sit in the dark and not speak for two hours while being whisked to a galaxy far, far away.
If you live in a state without reserve seating at your theater? You”ll just have to be cold. Totally worth it!
“Star Wars: Episode VIII” – written and directed by Rian Johnson – is currently in pre-production and begins principal photography in London next month.