Hollywood Boulevard was taken over completely by Disney for the Star Wars: The Force Awakens premiere outside the TCL Chinese Theater. It was the same spot where thousands gathered 38 years ago to see the first Star Wars movie. Now, everyone else is impatiently waiting to see the first new live-action Star Wars movie in over 10 years.
“I can’t believe we’re here!” Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy told the crowd just before the first screening of the film, reports Entertainment Weekly. “It’s a real privilege to make movies and everyone involved in The Force Awakens knows how lucky we’ve been to carry forward this incredible legacy that George [Lucas] began almost 40 years ago.”
Yes, even though George Lucas has given Disney complete control over Star Wars, he was still there and still recognized as the creator of this universe.
Kennedy went on to tell a story about how Lucas was in a car crash in 1962 in Modesto. It turns out that the person who helped Lucas out of the wreckage was Kennedy’s step-brother’s grandfather. She also revealed how director J.J. Abrams has been linked to Steven Spielberg for 30 years. When he was only 16, Abrams was hired to help restore super-8 movies Spielberg made.
“When George offered to have me step into one of the greatest jobs in show business, taking the reins of Lucasfilm, ushering in new Star Wars films, only one person seemed perfect to direct that first movie,” Kennedy said. “J.J. has incredible talent, a love of Star Wars, and enormous respect for George.”
Abrams also spoke, as did Disney CEO Bob Iger. Abrams thanked his parents for taking him to see Star Wars when he was 10. His father was at the premiere, but his mother died in 2012.
“Thank you for taking me to see Star Wars when I was 10. That was a very good idea,” Abrams said.
While critics were at the premiere, Disney embargoed reviews until Wednesday. And while we wait for the film to open on Thursday night, here’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Yoda.