SWNN Interview: Hasbro Star Wars Team ROTJ 40th Products, HasLab Challenges, and More
This week, Star Wars News Net was invited by the Hasbro Star Wars team for a roundtable where we were joined by Jing Houle (Global Manager, Brand Development & Marketing) and Chris Reiff (Associate Principal Product Designer). We discussed the latest announcements from their Hasbro Pulse Con, including The Return of The Jedi 40th Anniversary products, the challenges and learnings from their last HasLabs, and more.
Here are some of the highlights of our conversation:
Star Wars News Net: Fans are very excited to celebrate the 40th anniversary for Return of The Jedi, and there was a lot of interest in the Endor base playset — why this specific playset and what can fans expect in this upcoming anniversary line?
Chris Reiff: There’s a lot coming, yes. A year-long celebration, I would say. For that playset specifically, we thought that such a great scene with hero characters, lots of bad guys, other things around it that make sense for world building. There’s more to come — I mean you guys saw was we pipelined some really fun stuff that nests nicely with that. There’s even more for you coming. I think you’ll be excited.
Jing Houle: We haven’t even entered into 2023 yet. (laughs) So yeah, we pipelined a lot, but we’re excited for such a big, big end of the Original Trilogy 40th celebration for us — which is huge.
Star Wars News Net: There has been some criticism on the move from plastic packaging to a windowless box — you can’t see the figure prior to purchase, there have been incidents of stolen figures, etc. Any plans to go back to that packaging?
JH: It’s a good question. We have said it before in these interviews, but we are very proud of Hasbro for doing what’s right for the environment, and for the future generations. That’s something we’re proud to work for a company with that level of dedication. That being said, the conversations that are happening are not ignored. We do have a dedicated team set up to monitor, address and look into things like that.
Star Wars News Net: Products for Star Wars content is coming later and later from the premiere — i.e. Andor’s Bix isn’t hitting shelves until next summer when the show is currently airing — are there any plans to move up these timelines?
JH: We obviously work very closely with Lucasfilm on getting the content downloads, which we are so lucky to have those conversations. There are definitely characters that come out a little later than at the moment of show. We do have our development time which has been said in the past — that’s about a year to 18 months. This still holds true. So it’s just something like do we have enough information? Is it the right timing? So it does mean that some assets come out — or some figures — come out later. We trust inherently in our partnership with Lucasfilm in making that right choice. Because sometimes there are items that are so secret that they’re held back.
Star Wars News Net: With what your team has learned in the past year, how are you approaching your next HasLab?
CR: We’re constantly looking at learnings across brands on our own team — like listening to fans at conventions. It has been so amazing this year to get back to that. To sit there and get honest feedback from people, and fans are great in person. There can be what feels like toxicity online with it’s anonymous, but when people are face to face — it’s amazing. Even when people are giving us feedback that isn’t patting us on the back or giving us hugs, it’s good feedback and honest feedback — and that’s amazing. We’re listening to that sort of thing. In the HabLab world, what’s new in entertainment, what’s exciting, what’s popular — what’s worked in the past? What’s worked for other teams? It’s a big, giant process of figuring all those things out. And if we even want to do something. The fans are a big part of it.
We want to thank Jing and Chris from the Star Wars Hasbro team for taking the time to chat with us. Stay tuned to Star Wars News Net for the latest updates from Hasbro! Did you miss their Hasbro Pulse Con announcements? You can find them here.
You can check out our video from the roundtable below:
Lacey is a co-host on SWNN’s official podcast The Resistance Broadcast. You can see and hear her Monday and Thursday recapping the news and having deep discussions with the rest of the TRB crew. When not podcasting, Lacey provides live coverage for events like Star Wars Celebration, New York Comic Con, and more! A Star Wars Fan since 2nd grade, she has always been drawn to the characters and adventures in a galaxy far, far away. You can usually find her either watching The Force Awakens for the 100000th time, or looking for art, toys and collectibles to add to her ever-growing collection. Geek out with Lacey on Twitter and Instagram - @laceygilleran.
