As we get closer and closer to the release date for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” it gets harder for Disney to keep a lid on every secret. While major plot points remain a mystery to all but he most die-hard of spoiler Internet spelunkers, smaller tidbits are turning up in the strangest places.
Like when Adam Savage accidentally gave away a tiny detail during an io9 interview at Comic-Con.
So Phil Tippett – who designed all the original creatures for the first three Star Wars films – is a friend of mine. He got brought back in to the new Star Wars film by J.J. to redo a specific sequence that people will remember from Star Wars that carries forward into these sequels. And I got to go watch him shoot it.
For those of you who don”t know, Tippett is a bit of a legend in the visual effects world. He”s worked on everything from Star Wars to Indiana Jones to Robocop to Howard the Duck to Willow to Jurassic Park. For the last credit, he even became a meme back in 2013 that has percolated on social media ever since.
But back to the topic at hand! Adam Savage KNOWS something about “The Force Awakens.”
WARNING: EXTREMELY MINOR SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT!
It was so cool! The old school technology…the OLDEST school technology: his animation. It”s beautiful.
Taking a shot in the dark, the reporter asked if the scene in question was the 3-D chess table (aka the Dejarik table) aboard the Millennium Falcon. Caught up in the moment, Savage responded with a single word. “Yes.”
He immediately waffled to say who knows, maybe, anything is possible. But it”s too late. We already knew the chess table would make an appearance, thanks to J.J. himself. Now we know for sure the game will be activated once more.
Now it”s just a question of who will be playing a game of Dejarik. Will Chewbacca and R2-D2 have a rematch? Whoever is playing, I hope they remember the most important rule: Let the Wookiee win.