UPDATE! Kathleen Kennedy on Boba Fett’s Future, Daisy Ridley’s Fighting Style in The Force Awakens and More!
As we covered before, actress Daisy Ridley and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy visited Japan, for the very first press conference for Star Wars: The Force Awakens 2 weeks ago. It appears in one of the many interviews, Kathleen Kennedy actually revealed some really cool bits about the upcoming movies that we missed…
Special thanks to our reader TOGO from Japan who pointed us to this article. (And apologies for the sketchy translation – cobbled together from multiple sources and paraphrased by me. Keep in mind that this is not a direct translation, but an interpretation of two imperfect translations – we’re working with what we can here.)
From Kotaku.jp:
Kotaku: As we get into this epic saga, what research did you do in advance?
Kathleen Kennedy: In order to understand George Lucas’s fictional world and his method for creating it, we spent a considerable amount of time doing research onto what he made. The contents, it is his prior research, which was carried out in order of production, such as about the work that he was affected by, such as Flash Gordon and Akira Kurosawa’s movies. In addition, we looked a lot at early concept art by Ralph McQuarrie; we also went to the San Francisco Lucasfilm archive. The Death Star of the model that was actually used in the movie from the archive in San Francisco can be pulled out, and the Stormtrooper costume can be examined anew. Since the staff there are super Star Wars geeks, they fainted when we stopped by. [Laughs]
Daisy Ridley: Compared to Kathleen, I didn’t do nearly as much research! [Laughs] What I did for the movie was look into how to portray an independent character in a compelling way; what I mainly did for this was to conduct physical training. Reading the script and interpreting Rey’s thoughts and actions were also important, as I wanted to understand what I should show in the film.
Kennedy: Daisy trained with the swordfight choreographer of Game of Thrones.
Kotaku: She did a lot of training in swordfighting as well?
Kennedy: She learned the bōjutsu fighting style. Rey uses the staff she has in the trailer to fight. Daisy’s gotten to be so good at bōjutsu that even grown men on the set fear it. [Laughs]
Kotaku: The movie’s about half a year away. What are the fans going to do during the wait?
Kennedy: We’ll be unveiling the story in stages in the next six months or so. One way of spending time is visiting fan conventions, going to Star Wars exhibitions is another. We’re going to reveal new info step by step, but not necessarily on convention stage.
Kotaku: Ms. Daisy, did you get any advice from the cast that appeared in the previous movies?
Ridley: The cast members of Episode IV gave us great warm love and courage. They noted we were about as old as they were when they filmed A New Hope.
Kotaku: Kathleen, did the various actors and crew members need a lot of convincing to sign up to work on/in the next Star Wars movie?
Kennedy: We weren’t hard to convince – they wanted to join! I got a lot of phone calls, so it was harder to find the people who were not able to participate.
Kotaku: In yesterday’s kick-off meeting, you joked that Jar-Jar does not come back. On that note, will Boba Fett come back? Also, is there a possibility of Ewok re-appearance?
Kennedy: Don’t worry: Boba Fett is a high priority among our list, please wait. But seeing how the Ewoks could return is a little harder to imagine. It is quite difficult to give the many stars of Star Wars their own stories on film.
The interview also clarified that post-production is currently focused on implementing CGI work, and that John Williams has gotten started on scoring the film. This information strongly suggests that the second Star Wars Anthology film will be about Boba Fett – and again, it’s worth noting that Lucas Licensing’s Johnathan Rinzler said he did not die in the Sarlaac. It also appears that Rey will not initially use a lightsaber in the movie, and that the polearm she’s seen carrying in the trailer is her primary weapon.
Bōjutsu (棒術?), translated from Japanese as “staff technique”, is the martial art of using a staff weapon called bō which simply means “staff”. Some techniques involve slashing, swinging, and stabbing with the staff. Others involve using the staff as a vaulting pole or as a prop for hand-to-hand strikes. (via Wiki)
In the next video you can see a simple demonstration of bōjutsu:
And in the next, a bōjutsu technique taken to another level (@ 2:00 min.):
As you probably remember during the Abu Dhabi shoot extras revealed that Daisy Ridley’s character is extremely gymnastic and some of her scenes were being doubled by a dancer called Hannah Collins. Also Daisy has a stunt double – Chloe Bruce. In the following video you can see a training video by Chloe. You can even see her bōjutsu skills (@ 1:35 min.):
We can’t wait to see Daisy Ridley and her bōjutsu in Star Wars: The Force Awakens! 🙂
UPDATE!
There is another interview with Ridley from another Japanese magazine. Our friend TOGO gave us a quick recap on the most interesting bits:
Daisy talks that she lifted a 70kg barbell for the preparing for the movie. Her father is dedicated Star Trek fan.
Reminded that love is prohibited by Jedi code, the interviewer asked Daisy which she would choose between love and work? She replied both, with smile.
She likes swimming very much, also she likes to play badminton, table tennis with her father.
Her first SW movie was Phantom Menace on VHS when she was 5 years old.
Her favorite character is Luke Skywalker.
Grant has been a fan of Star Wars for as long as he can remember, having seen every movie on the big screen. When he’s not hard at work with his college studies, he keeps himself busy by reporting on all kinds of Star Wars news for SWNN and general movie news on the sister site, Movie News Net. He served as a frequent commentator on SWNN’s The Resistance Broadcast.
I see a double bladed saber in Rey’s future.
Not only you 🙂
Just to be fair, I wanted to let you know that I clicked on “Report Comment” for your post by accident. You of course did nothing wrong, and I wanted it noted just in case a mod checks it out. Sorry! I also liked it for some payback! 😉
I actually see a lightsaber that has a blade on the end but a long double handed hilt.
Plagueis’ lightsaber had a similar design:
http://www.sirstevesguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Plagueis-24.jpg
I’ve seen that before. Being the junk collector that she is, i wonder if it could somehow be Plaguis’ after all.
I would agree except that when someone attacks you with a lightsaber you need a long enough lightsaber surface to deflect so she might have to alter her technique to accomodate a Maul type weapon.
The risk vs reward is pretty even.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhCHw0Ovqf4&t=58s
An idiotic scene from a terrible movie doesn’t prove anything.
Wow, maximum pleb. You should be ashamed of your shit taste.
Hahahah. That’s cute. He thinks Star Wars choreography is more realistic than the best weapon fight scene ever made.
It’s called a light pike
Give her a yellow-bladed one like Bastila Shan. She needs something to make her unique in the canon IMO.
No she doesn’t.
Being a badass female Jedi sets her apart quite enough. Stick with Blue and Green!!! The more you branch out into all of these different designs and colors, the more the magic of Star Wars is diluted.
I agree. A simple light blue looks the best. The variety should come from story (like telling a bold purposeful new story from a stormtrooper’s point of view) or from new aliens and new planetary environments, not from orange and mauve lightsabers.
How does adding lightsaber colors “dilute the magic of Star Wars?” And didn’t Luke’s Kenner toy have a yellow lightsaber?
I think having a different lightsaber is ok.
Here’s one thing to consider though:
Luke has a Green
Kylo has a Red
The only other lightsaber is Blue, but we don’t know who uses it or if it will even be used.
I think Blue is a good fit for her personally, but yellow would also look good on her, with no damage done to the Star Wars mystique, the whole point of lightsabers is that they are a fantastic contrast to the “drab industrial” surroundings, so why not change the color? It’s a friggin’ laser sword! it’s already weird and out-of-place, no matter what frequency of color it is.
Thinking about it though, they may opt for a blue lightsaber because
A) yellow looks like green at a glance and they want her LS to stand out [luke’s LS is Green for a similar reason, to stand out against Tattooine’s blue sky in that ONE scene.]
B) keeps up the legacy and heritage and shit
My prediction: Daisy uses the staff, and the Blue Lightsaber at the very end.
Ep VIII: Daisy gets training, as part of that training she makes HER OWN lightsaber, a Two-Blade, could be blue, could be yellow.
Rey.. Episode IX:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nz8yoLlclg
To good to be true 🙁
Wow! Makes Yoda and The Emperor look like novices. Please JJ and Rian, give us bad ass force powers. We are a Dragon Ball Z generation…well some of us.
Never link Star Wars with that crap ever again
I think a force pike/saber would be somewhat more unique.
Think Musashibo Benkei
What about the video of George Lucas broadcasted for the occasion that is impossible to see here?
Any news about that?
I’m not sure what you’re talking about – could you clarify?
There was video message from GL himself, but it was marketing for Star Wars exhibition which has been held in Tokyo since 29th of April. Mainly he talked about his interest of Japanese culture, costume of feudal era, and his association with Kurosawa. Nothing was mentioned about upcoming films. It was broadcasted by Japanese TV network.
Ah, thank you! Well, I guess I’ll just have to say “Domo Arigato” to you. 🙂
Thanks for these finds, by the way.
The most overrated character in the star wars universe gets a spin-off movie, great.. I think the bojutsu part is awesome though, reminds me of Darth Maul a little bit
It was bound to happen. But maybe his overratedness will be justified a little in this new film, by releasing new canonical content in which he actually DOES do something more than capture Han Solo and fall into a Sarlacc Pit…
Levoc I’m with you 100% bud
Me too.
Boba Fett may only be overrated because we’ve seen so little of him. Give him his own proper movie and we’ll know a lot more. Boba Fett has millions of fans, and they wanna see more of him, including me.
A Bounty Hunter, with rocket pack and awesome gadgets and weapons with a history of dealing with the Hutts and other mysterious characters and an unknown history and post Sarlaac future, and the persona of Clint Eastwood (until the prequels) I fail to see how thats overrated!
It leaves a lot of opportunities for them to branch out into the galaxy in ways we have never had a chance to see before. Calling him over rated is preposterous. There is so much more badassery left in his character. Disney would be fools in their line of business not to milk every bit of marrow from that bone.
I personally would like to see a little more of Fett, but we can all already see where this is going and pretty soon the world will be sick of all things Star Wars 🙁
Fett was cool once, but now he’s nothing but a clone, so his character is forever watered-down and tarnished. Thanks GL!!!
Yes, it’s not what we wanted him to be before the PT for sure (and ROTJ sure didn’t help either). But there is a lot of room left to turn it all around but only if they set it post Jedi.
Yes, Lucas deciding to have Boba be a clone of another bounty hunter was a foolish idea, but luckily we have Lawrence Kasdan assisting at the reins once again! His origin story to the Fett we know and love in the OT (IMO) would set things straight in that killing the clone Boba off and having his armor stolen and painted by another, unidentified and more badass bounty hunter would restore Boba Fett’s character to the mysterious, dangerous and terrifying fiend he is during reign of the galactic empire.
Jodo kast would be cool to see http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jodo_Kast
How would you explain the clone voice that they changed it to, it’s all canon now
No #1 rule to Boba Fett:
Show him in Action
DO NOT Explain his friggin’ life story!!!
Didn’t we learn anything from Heath Ledger’s Joker?
thinking about it, a darth maul spinoff may be ok…
That would be really cool but with all the debate and negativity regarding anything from the PT, Disney will probably want to steer clear of any PT characters in future films unfortunately
Yes because the mouse house is deeply concerned with what the internet commenters think 🙁
Make it a two-parter!
Yeah, yeah… bōjutsu… But everyone knows their true inspiration was the Star Wars Kid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPPj6viIBmU
Hahaha, I nearly forgot about that guy! Hopefully, Rey will look more graceful in combat.
Can Togo translate that magazine article that is floating about, or anyone else who can read Japanese?
Holy shit Chloe is bad ass. She needs to just have her own part in the movie as like an assassin or something
yeee my brother boba alive
“When it comes to twenty year old Rey…..Luke Skywalker you ARE the father!” – Maury Povich
LOL.
LIKE A BOSS
“it’s worth noting that the Lucasfilm Story Group officially says he did not die in the Sarlaac.”
Um… You need to read the update to your own article. Miller isn’t a part of the Story Group.
And just because Lucas told Miller he survived doesn’t guarantee he did. It is up to the new blood to decide that, and they have shown that Lucas’s ideas for the future of the saga are not sacred. Even Lucas could have changed his mind by now.
Ha ha, good point. Thanks.
Jonathan Rinzler is a part of Lucasfilm Licensing, which is still pretty big on the hierarchy.
And considering the popularity of the character, I don’t think that Disney will keep him dead. There’s too much potential to not utilize.
But I don’t think Rinzler would necessarily be part of the choice to bring him back, though I could be wrong. He simply said what Lucas told him about Fett.
I also think he will be back in more than prequel form, but I’m simply saying that just because Lucas said it doesn’t make it so in the new regime.
Bringing back Boba Fett’s a no-brainer. You don’t need to hear it from the canon peeps to know that.
Never said we did, and I said I expect it anyway. But Lucas saying he is alive is not itself confirmation since he isn’t in charge. That’s all I meant.
Yes, there is too much potential not to utilize here. But Boba Fett doesn’t have to be alive past RotJ to see all his potential realized.
A Boba Fett spinoff film could happen at any time from the end of AotC to the moment Fett arrives at the Executor right in the middle of TESB. That’s about 25+ years of virgin territory to be explored right there.
Not saying that Boba Fett didn’t survive the Sarlacc Pit. Just saying that any spinoff film(s) starring Boba Fett doesn’t necessarily have to happen after RotJ.
They ABSOLUTLY do. Fett went out like a crying punk. Anything they do before then no matter how cool will be tainted by knowing that that end is coming. For him to be seen as cool again, it must start with escaping the sarlacc and rectifying that pathetic fate.
Also doesn’t mean they can’t do a spinoff that is after RotJ and before TFA.
I agree. He went out like a punk. It is also possible that they will keep that Boba dead or have him survive but pass on his name and armor.
She would have made a great Bastila in an old republic movie, she looks like her… Oh well but that staff might be darth plagueis’s staff
If that staff doesn’t turn out to be a lightsaber I’m going to be very disappointed. Why use obvious elements of Maul’s saber design and just make it a staff. And why have a technical look if it is just a bo.
From what I have heard so far it doesn’t seem like she uses it as a saber (just a hunch really), but maybe it’s broken and she doesn’t figure out it is a saber till later?
Isn’t it a force staff like what Grievous’s guards used?
Might be an electrostaff, but I don’t think so. It definitely isn’t the same prop as ep3.
I can’t get over the way the end looksw like a blade should extend from it. Imagine her in that big “abandoned” star destroyer slicing through walls or fending off what or who might be dwelling inside of it.
Let me be the first to note that it is possible (although highly unlikely) that Rey will not be a Jedi. One can be a skilled fighter and martial artist without force augmentation. However, I think she will be a Jedi eventually though as her speculated heritage suggests. There is no doubt in my mind though that if so much effort has been made to train her in the art of a staff that her lightsaber will be of similar design. I think that sounds awesome, and if she does use one, I’m pretty sure it will be the first time we see a Jedi use a saber-staff in the films. I also like the idea of branching out in color…I mean, we already have a purple blade among the Jedi in canon. A lot of the Legends stories in the Old Republic era featured yellow blades. It would be a cool throwback to these stories to see it in the new film. That being said, I’m still partial to Jedi blue and green and I think we’ll see those colors with Finn and Luke respectively.
Jedi Temple Guards had yellow blades in The Clone Wars, so yellow is canon. http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jedi_Temple_Guard/Canon
Indeed :
Blue are of Guardians.
Yellow are for Sentinels.
Green are for Consuls.
I would love a female main character and a Jedi!
At first I thought that newspaper is prop from the movie, written with Aurebesh
She watched Phantom Menace before that movie exist? Great Jedi skill……
I noticed that too. She should have been seven years old.
Obviously by ‘5 years old’ she means young enough to barely remember the experience.
The age thing was probably lost in translation, these things happen.
“Reminded that love is prohibited by Jedi code, the interviewer asked Daisy which she would choose between love and work? She replied both, with smile.”
Good. Glad to get an indication that the Jedi in these films will act like normal people again.
Again?
Oh, right, I forgot. Living in exile, totally estranged from the rest of the world, is the most normal thing for people to do in the galaxy. Sure!
I’m talking about the portrayal of Jedi characters, not their circumstances. Old Ben in IV felt more human than all the PT Jedi put together.
That’s not what your first comment sounded like to me. You were clearly speaking against the rule of non-attachment, based on the Ridley comment on love vs. duty. But whatever. That’s your opinion and your entitled to it.
I have absolutely no problem with Lucas’ portrayal of the Jedi in the PT. In fact, I know it was deliberate, because this lack of humanity (even from those Jedi who were not human) was at the core of their fall.
The execution might have failed on screen, perhaps. But on paper the idea was another touch of brilliance from one of our time’s greatest creative geniuses.
It was the Jedi’s gullibility that took away from the stories. I feel as many if not most of the Jedi would be a bit disturbed by having to lead a clone army that came from….well…nowhere…probably a thousand red flags should have shown up there guys……PALPATINE’S BEHIND IT ALL!
In fact, the whole ‘non-attachment’ thing led to Anakin’s only redeemable ‘smart’ moment when he talked around it in AOTC (of course he ruins it with the creepy ‘in my dreams’ line). That internal debate could have been played up between Anakin and a semi-sympathetic Obi-Wan, ultimately leading to heart break, fire, loss of limbs, identity, healthy skin etc.
Yes, Lucas failed when he tried to translate his vision from the written page to the screen. But that’s got nothing to do with the non-attachment rule.
Be it in real life or fantasy, orders of knights like the Jedi are monastic. Members always take chastity vows, loyalty vows, poverty vows, etc. when initiated into the order.
Example:
“I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children.” – The oath of the Night’s Watch.
I don’t see ANY fans of A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones going on up in arms because of this. It’s only fools, ignorant and naïve enough not to know their history, that hate and refuse to understand the Jedi non-attachment rule.
She’s talking about her own preference, not her character’s.
Either way, I just hope we don’t see anymore weird, emotionless, sexless Jedi who all dress up in the same boring robes.
Yea for real! Thank goodness!!!
Oh isht!! Chloe Bruce is her stunt double!!! I love her. She’s amazing.
There’s been some stuff from a story standpoint that made me a little wary but the one thing that makes me really excited and confident in this team is the supporting cast of choreographers and stunt doubles and all the production team they’ve enlisted for this. From the guys who did The Raid 2 to Chloe Bruce and Pip Anderson, they’re clearly using talented people who can bring real life superhuman abilities to this film. So cool.
phantom menace came out in 99 she’s born in 92 how did she watch the movie in 97?
LoL…7 years old
She’s the Reverse Flash
Biff Tannen traveled back in time from 2015 with a smuggled VHS copy in the backseat. It was misplaced in 1955, eventually finding its way into Daisy’s hands circa ’97. She watched it once before wisely destroying it.
Problem solved. =D
It is the future she sees.
Weird that Daisy saw Phantom Menace on VHS when she was 5 considering the movie didn’t release in theaters until she was 7.
pt is best jango vs jedi it would best movie ever
hmmmmm! considering the VHS was not released until 2000 lol and Daisy found her copy in the bargain bin! that’s another year hahaha. more like 8 ir 9 years old She lied! She lied to us! funny!
I told you she would never consciously betray her trekkie father.
hahaha hahaha bahahahaha! I’m growing a tail back here!
“Don’t worry: Boba Fett is a high priority among our list”
Glad to hear that. ^^
She may have just said Phantom Menace while actually meaning to refer to one of the others. I’m sure she’s seen them and like them but we have to accept that not everyone is a fanatic like most of us here, and can have trouble remembering which one is which. She probably just confused titles.
Or she lied…bc…you know…lying.
Omfg Plaugie is totally in this film
i got 8 days for star wars the force awakens once is out in theatres this december but in on may 26 will they revealed the title for star wars episode 8 and 9 i hope the title we be like return of the empire or knights of the old republic or revenge of the sith 2 or a new destiny or betrayel of the jedi those of the titles they must choose may the force be with you always
I want some of whatever you are on.
I want to see a spear light saber !!
They should get Joe Johnston to direct the Boba Fett movie! #joejohnstonforstarwars
i don’t want martial arts in star wars. the prancing around by maul in tpm is a good example why not, it looks out of place. wot next, darth jet li ?
Darth Ky-Li, armed with laserchuks
“Ridley: The cast members of ***Episode IV*** gave us great warm love and courage.”
Hint-hint?
@Dude in Hat – did you forget about Mace Windu’s purple saber?
And as far as Boba, just do it like the Rogue One movie (as far as not taking place after ROTJ, make it Boba post ANH/pre ESB.
I agree, Boba should have a film, but more along the lines of Clint Eastwood’s “man with no Name”, who appeared in 3 separate movies [to my knowledge, maybe more] as the same character with ZERO explanation of who he actually is.
That was the thing about those Sergio Leone films: they were very Villain-centric, focusing on the struggle at hand, leaving the actual “Main” Character almost [in the case of Clint Eastwood, literally] unintroduced.
Another good example of an little-explained hero in a Spaghetti-western is Charles Bronson in “Once Upon a Time in the West”, who is basically the guardian-angel of the other protagonists,
however he differs from Eastwood’s character in that he IS explained, at the closing act of the film, there is a single flashback that instantaneously explains WHY he is so dead-set on his Revenge-Mission, made all the more powerful by the mystery around him for the previous 2 hours [it’s a looooong film, great piece of cinema though]
I wish they could get someone like Sergio Leone to do the Boba Fett film, because that would be a classic that would eclipse TESB in my opinion.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, ya got AOTC, where Boba Fett’s childhood story is squashed and short-handed in favor of getting a few more minutes of Anakin trying to act “conflicted”.
Like, WHY?
At that rate they should have just removed the Fetts entirely,
I still hold that Zam Wessel would have made a far better 2nd-tier antagonist than Jango.
Great that you mention Sergio Leone, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” and “Once Upon a Time in the West” are far and away the best western movies of all time (IMO) and also rank among my favorite movies of all time (the OT being my favorite of course). In fact I’d even put OUATITW ahead of GBU even though it doesn’t have Eastwood in it (by then he couldn’t stand Leone and his meticulous filming style). These are masterfully crafted films, Leone is capable of having a seemingly never-ending scene with sweat dripping down a guy’s forehead for 3 minutes with opera music in the background (modern Hollywood would NEVER allow this now). The great thing about Spaghetti westerns (and particularly those of Sergio Leone) is that they were absolutely not a realistic portrayal of the “wild west” but rather a mythologized version of the West as seen through the eyes of Europeans with all the old world cultural baggage they carried with them. Plus Claudia Cardinale was one of the hottest women to ever grace Hollywood’s screens (again IMO).
She is too old! Too old to be a Jedi!
Is sharadd hett still canon. He became Darth krayt. He had a pretty cool story
She could’ve gotten the standard lightsaber training in addition to the bōjutsu stuff. My guess is she’ll use the staff during the Jakku stuff, then once she, Finn, and BB-8 (and possibly Poe?)leave in the Falcon, she swaps it for the blue lightsaber (either Anakin’s or one she constructed before the story proper) she uses in the leaked concept art and uses that along with a blaster for the remainder of the movie.
That, or she dual wields a staff and a lightsaber. Because why not:)
A staff AND a lightsaber? Can it be done?
Can anyone clarify is the new trilogy story that of Lucas’s ideas or made up by some new story writers?