Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Star Wars: The Force Awakens
File:Star Wars The Force Awakens Theatrical Poster.jpg Theatrical release poster
Directed by	J. J. Abrams
Produced by	Kathleen Kennedy J. J. Abrams Bryan Burk
Written by	Lawrence Kasdan J. J. Abrams Michael Arndt
Based on	Characters by George Lucas
Starring	Harrison Ford Mark Hamill Carrie Fisher Adam Driver Daisy Ridley John Boyega Oscar Isaac Lupita Nyong'o Andy Serkis Domhnall Gleeson Anthony Daniels Peter Mayhew Max von Sydow
Music by	John Williams
Cinematography	Dan Mindel
Edited by	Mary Jo Markey Maryann Brandon
Production companies	Lucasfilm Ltd. Bad Robot Productions
Distributed by	Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release dates	December 14, 2015 (2015-12-14) (Los Angeles premiere) December 18, 2015 (2015-12-18) (United States)
Running time	136 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$306 million (gross) $245 million (net)
Box office	$2.067 billion

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (also known as Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens) is a 2015 American epic space opera film directed, co-produced, and co-written by J. J. Abrams. The seventh installment in the main Star Wars film series, it stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Max von Sydow. Produced by Lucasfilm and Abrams' Bad Robot Productions and distributed worldwide by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, The Force Awakens is set 30 years after Return of the Jedi; it follows Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron's search for Luke Skywalker and their fight alongside the Resistance, led by veterans of the Rebel Alliance, against Kylo Ren and the First Order, a successor group to the Galactic Empire.

The Force Awakens is the first film in the Star Wars sequel trilogy announced after Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm in October 2012. It was produced by Abrams, his longtime collaborator Bryan Burk, and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan, co-writer of the original trilogy films The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983), rewrote an initial script by Michael Arndt. John Williams, composer for the previous six films, returned to compose its score. Star Wars creator George Lucas served as creative consultant during the film's early production. Filming began in April 2014 in Abu Dhabi and Iceland, with principal photography also taking place in Ireland and Pinewood Studios in England, and concluded in November 2014. It is the first live-action film in the franchise since Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, released in 2005.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens was widely anticipated, with Disney backing the film through extensive marketing campaigns. It premiered in Los Angeles on December 14, 2015, four days before its release in North America. The film received mostly positive reviews and broke many box office records, becoming the highest-grossing installment of the franchise, the highest-grossing film in North America, and the third highest grossing film of all time with a worldwide gross of more than $2 billion. It received five Academy Award nominations and four British Academy Film Award nominations, where it won Best Special Visual Effects. Two sequels, Episode VIII and Episode IX, are scheduled for 2017 and 2019 respectively.

Plot

Approximately 30 years after the destruction of the second Death Star, the last remaining Jedi, Luke Skywalker, has disappeared. The First Order has risen from the fallen Galactic Empire and seeks to eliminate the New Republic. The Resistance, backed by the Republic and led by Luke's twin sister, General Leia Organa, opposes them while searching for Luke to enlist his aid.

Resistance pilot Poe Dameron meets village elder Lor San Tekka on the planet Jakku to obtain a map to Luke's location. Stormtroopers commanded by Kylo Ren destroy the village and capture Poe. Poe's droid BB-8 escapes with the map, and encounters the scavenger Rey near a junkyard settlement. Ren tortures Poe using the Force, and learns of BB-8. Stormtrooper FN-2187, unable to bring himself to kill for the First Order, frees Poe, and they escape in a stolen TIE fighter; Poe dubs FN-2187 "Finn". They crash on Jakku, and Finn survives, but is unable to determine if Poe did as well. He encounters Rey and BB-8, but the First Order tracks them and launches an airstrike. Finn, Rey, and BB-8 flee the planet in the Millennium Falcon, which they steal from a junkyard.

The Falcon breaks down, gets caught in a tractor beam, and is captured by a larger ship piloted by Han Solo and Chewbacca, looking to reclaim their former vessel. Two rival gangs, seeking to settle debts with Han, board and attack, but Han and company manage to escape in the Falcon. The gangs inform the First Order of the events. At the First Order's Starkiller Base – a planet converted into a superweapon that harnesses energy from stars – Supreme Leader Snoke orders General Hux to use the weapon for the first time. Snoke questions Ren's ability to deal with emotions relating to his father, Han Solo; Ren replies that Solo means nothing to him.

The Falcon crew views BB-8's map and determines it is incomplete. Han explains that Luke attempted to rebuild the Jedi Order, but exiled himself when an apprentice turned to the dark side. The crew travels to the planet Takodana and meet with cantina owner Maz Kanata, who offers assistance in getting BB-8 to the Resistance. Rey is drawn to a vault on the lower level and finds the lightsaber that once belonged to Luke and his father, Anakin Skywalker. She experiences disturbing visions and flees into the woods. Maz gives Finn the lightsaber for safekeeping.

Starkiller Base fires and destroys the Republic capital and fleet. The First Order attacks Takodana in search of BB-8. Han, Chewbacca, and Finn are saved by Resistance X-wing fighters led by Poe, revealing that he survived the earlier crash. Leia arrives at Takodana with C-3PO and reunites with Han and Chewbacca. Meanwhile, Ren captures Rey and takes her to Starkiller Base. However, when he interrogates her about the map, she is able to resist his mind-reading attempts. Discovering she can use the Force, she escapes using a Jedi mind trick on a nearby guard.

At the Resistance base on D'Qar, BB-8 finds R2-D2, who has been inactive since Luke's disappearance. As Starkiller Base prepares to fire on D'Qar, the Resistance devises a plan to destroy the superweapon by attacking a critical facility. Leia urges Han to return their son alive. Using the Falcon, Han, Chewbacca, and Finn infiltrate the facility and plant explosives. Han confronts Ren, calling him by his birth name, Ben, and implores him to abandon the dark side. Ren refuses and kills his father, enraging Chewbacca, who fires and hits Ren. He sets off the explosives, allowing the Resistance to attack and destroy Starkiller Base.

The injured Ren pursues Finn and Rey to the surface. A lightsaber battle between Ren and Finn ensues, leaving Finn badly wounded. Rey takes the lightsaber and uses the Force to defeat Ren, before they are separated by a fissure as the planet begins to disintegrate. Snoke orders Hux to evacuate and bring Ren to him. Rey and Chewbacca escape with Finn in the Falcon. On D'Qar, the Resistance celebrates while Leia, Chewbacca, and Rey mourn Han's death. R2-D2 awakens and reveals the rest of the map, which Rey follows to a distant planet. She finds Luke and presents him with the lightsaber.

Cast

Main article: List of Star Wars characters

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens introduces (from top) Adam Driver as the dark warrior Kylo Ren, Daisy Ridley as the scavenger Rey, John Boyega as the reformed stormtrooper Finn, and Oscar Isaac as X-wing fighter pilot Poe Dameron.

• Harrison Ford as Han Solo:

A rogue and a smuggler, formerly a key player in the Rebel Alliance. Ford said Han "does not aspire to the position of Obi-Wan, nor do I aspire to be some New Age Alec Guinness. His development is consistent with the character, and there are emotional elements which have occasioned his growth... There's a lot of the rogue still left in Solo. Some things don't change..."

• Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker:

One of the last remaining Jedi, who has gone into hiding. Regarding Luke, Han, and Leia, Abrams stated: "They'd be as old and as mythic as the tale of King Arthur. They would be characters who [the new characters] may have heard of, but maybe not. They'd be characters who they might believe existed, or just sounded like a fairy tale..."

• Carrie Fisher as General Leia Organa:

The former princess of the destroyed planet Alderaan, turned General of the Resistance, and Luke's twin sister. After the events of Return of the Jedi, she is described as "a little more battle weary, a little more broken hearted." Fisher described Leia as "Solitary. Under a lot of pressure. Committed as ever to her cause, but I would imagine feeling somewhat defeated, tired, and pissed." Abrams said: "The stakes are pretty high in the story for her, so there's not much goofing around where Leia's concerned."

• Adam Driver as Kylo Ren:

A dark warrior strong with the Force, originally a member of the Knights of Ren, a son of Han Solo and Leia Organa, and commander of the First Order. Driver said the team tried "not to think of him as being bad, or evil, or a villain. Something that was more three-dimensional. He's more dangerous and unpredictable, and morally justified in doing what he thinks is right."

• Daisy Ridley as Rey:

A scavenger abandoned as a child on the desert planet Jakku, who is waiting for her family to return. Ridley said: "She's completely self-sufficient and does everything for herself, until she meets [Finn] and an adventure begins." Cailey Fleming plays a young Rey.

• John Boyega as Finn:

A reformed First Order stormtrooper. Boyega said that he learned he obtained the part "over a nice breakfast in Mayfair" where Abrams told him: "John, you're the new star of Star Wars." Boyega said: "When we find Finn, he's in incredible danger. And the way he reacts to this danger changes his life, and launches him into the Star Wars universe in a very unique way." He said in another interview: "He's been taught about [Luke], he knows about his history. For him it's like joining the army and then learning about one of the great enemies of your country."

• Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron:

A Resistance X-wing fighter pilot. Isaac said: "He's the best freaking pilot in the galaxy... He's been sent on a mission by a certain princess, and he ends up coming up across [Finn], and their fates are forever intertwined."

• Lupita Nyong'o as Maz Kanata:

A wise and perceptive figure operating a somewhat shady cantina on the peaceful forest planet, Takodana. J. J. Abrams said Kanata has "lived over a thousand years. She's had this watering hole … and it's like another bar that you'd find in a corner of the Star Wars universe." According to Abrams, the character was based on his former high school English teacher, Rose Gilbert, who lectured at the Palisades Charter High School from 1961 to 2013. Abrams said the team "really wanted the story to feel authentic, despite being a wild fantasy. I mentioned Rose in an early story meeting as a sort of timeless, wise figure that I'd actually known in my life."

• Andy Serkis as Supreme Leader Snoke:

The political leader of the First Order. He is Kylo Ren's master and is very powerful in the dark side. Serkis described Snoke as "quite an enigmatic character, and strangely vulnerable at the same time as being quite powerful... He is large. He appears tall. And also just the facial design—you couldn't have gotten there with prosthetics... Without giving too much away at this point, he has a very distinctive, idiosyncratic bone and facial structure."

• Domhnall Gleeson as General Hux:

The commander of the First Order's Starkiller Base. Gleeson described him as "pretty ruthless. A strong disciplinarian would be a mild way of putting it... He's kind of opposite Kylo Ren. They have their own relationship, which is individual and unusual. One of them is strong in different ways than the other. They're both vying for power."

• Anthony Daniels as C-3PO:

A humanoid protocol droid under Organa's service. Daniels said the actors were allowed to experiment with their performances, and that Abrams "made a field, a playpen where you were allowed to take your time and suggest things."

• Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca:

A loyal Wookiee and Solo's longtime companion. Joonas Suotamo portrays the character in several action scenes, as the 71-year-old Mayhew suffered from knee problems.

• Max von Sydow as Lor San Tekka:

A retired adventurer on Jakku, aiding the Resistance in locating Skywalker.

Tim Rose and Mike Quinn reprise their respective roles as Admiral Ackbar and Nien Nunb, both from Return of the Jedi. Kipsang Rotich returns as the voice of Nien Nunb and Erik Bauersfeld returns to voice Ackbar. Kenny Baker, originally announced as part of the cast, was credited as "consultant" for R2-D2. Ewan McGregor has an uncredited vocal cameo as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Rey's vision sequence, while archival audio of Frank Oz and Alec Guinness as Yoda and Kenobi, respectively, are also used in the same scene; Oz recorded new dialogue for the film, but it was replaced with pre-existing audio from The Empire Strikes Back.

Gwendoline Christie portrays Captain Phasma, the commander of the First Order's legions of stormtroopers. Dave Chapman and Brian Herring served as puppeteers for BB-8, with Bill Hader and Ben Schwartz credited as "Vocal Consultants". Ken Leung appears as Statura, an admiral in the Resistance. Simon Pegg appears as Unkar Plutt, the Junkyard dealer on Jakku. Greg Grunberg plays Temmin "Snap" Wexley, an X-wing pilot. Kiran Shah plays Teedo, a scavenger on Jakku who rides a semi-mechanical Luggabeast. Jessica Henwick appears as Jess "Testor" Pava or Jess Testor, an X-wing pilot. Brian Vernel appears as Bala-Tik, the leader of the Guavian Death Gang. Yayan Ruhian, Iko Uwais, and Cecep Arif Rahman appear as Tasu Leech, Razoo Qin-Fee, and Crokind Shand, members of the Kanjiklub Gang, a criminal organization. Warwick Davis appears as Wollivan, a tavern-dweller in Maz Kanata's castle. Anna Brewster appears as Bazine Netal, a First Order spy, also at Maz Kanata's castle. Thomas Brodie-Sangster and Kate Fleetwood play First Order Petty Officers, Thanisson and Unamo, respectively. Billie Lourd, daughter of Carrie Fisher, appears as Connix, a lieutenant in the Resistance. Members of the Resistance include Emun Elliott as Brance and Maisie Richardson-Sellers as Korr Sella while Harriet Walter appears as Kalonia, the doctor who tends to Chewbacca. Mark Stanley appears as a Knight of Ren. Sebastian Armesto portrays Lieutenant Mikata and Pip Torrens portrays Colonel Caplan, both serving the First Order.

Actor Daniel Craig, composer Michael Giacchino and record producer Nigel Godrich cameo as stormtroopers. Abrams' assistant, Morgan Dameron, appears as a Resistance officer, while his father, Gerald W. Abrams, appears as Captain Cypress. The film's dialect coach, Andrew Jack, appears as Major Ematt of the Resistance. Additionally, Crystal Clarke, Pip Andersen, Christina Chong, Miltos Yerolemou, Amybeth Hargreaves, Leanne Best, Judah Friedlander, and Kevin Smith were cast in minor roles. Abrams has a vocal cameo, singing with Lin-Manuel Miranda on two songs, "Jabba Flow" and "Dobra Doompa", performed by Shag Kava, consisting of Abrams, Manuel and musicians. Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels cast members Dee Bradley Baker, Matt Lanter, Tom Kane, Catherine Taber, Matthew Wood, Sam Witwer, Meredith Salenger, James Arnold Taylor and show runner Dave Filoni, as well as David Acord, Michael Donovan, Devon Libran, Elle Newlands, Terri Douglas, Robert Stambler, Verona Blue, TJ Falls, Michelle Rejwan, Eugene Byrd, Fred Tatasciore, David Collins, Amanda Foreman, Christopher Scarabosio, Patrick Correll, Karen Huie, Orly Schuchmacher, Emily Towers, Jonathan Dixon, Kat Sheridan, Salacious Crumb actor Mark Dodson, and Gavyn Sykes actor Christian Simpson were the additional voices used in the film.

Production

Development

See also: Star Wars sequel trilogy

Star Wars creator George Lucas discussed ideas for a sequel trilogy several times after the conclusion of the original trilogy, but denied any intent to make it. In October 2012, he sold his production company Lucasfilm, and with it the Star Wars franchise, to The Walt Disney Company. Speaking alongside Lucasfilm's new president, Kathleen Kennedy, Lucas said: "I always said I wasn't going to do any more and that's true, because I'm not going to do any more, but that doesn't mean I'm unwilling to turn it over to Kathy to do more."

As creative consultant on the film, Lucas attended early story meetings and advised on the details of the Star Wars universe. Among the materials he turned over to the production team were his rough story treatments for Episodes VII–IX, which Lucas requested would only be read by Kennedy, Bob Iger, Alan Horn, and Kevin Mayer. Lucas later stated that Disney had discarded his story ideas and that he had no further involvement with the film. Lucas' son Jett told The Guardian that his father was "very torn" about having sold the rights to the franchise, despite having hand-picked Abrams to direct, and that his father was "there to guide" but that "he wants to let it go and become its new generation."

In November 2015, Lucas said that Disney was "not that keen" to involve him and conceded: "If I get in there, I'm just going to cause trouble because they're not going to do what I want them to do, and I don't have the control to do that any more, and all it would do is just muck everything up." In December 2015, after the film's release, he said: "They wanted to do a retro movie. I don't like that. Every movie, I worked very hard to make them different ... I made them completely different—different planets, different spaceships to make it new." Abrams felt that, as the first in a new trilogy, the film "needed to take a couple of steps backwards into very familiar terrain" and use plot elements from previous Star Wars films.

(L–R) Producer Kathleen Kennedy, writer and director J. J. Abrams and writer Lawrence Kasdan speaking at the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con International

Episode VII's first screenplay was written by Michael Arndt. Early drafts had Luke appear midway through the film, but Arndt found that "every time Luke came in and entered the movie, he just took it over. Suddenly you didn't care about your main character anymore." Luke became the film's MacGuffin and does not appear in person until the final scene. Several directors were considered, including David Fincher, Brad Bird and Guillermo del Toro; After a suggestion by Steven Spielberg to Kennedy, J. J. Abrams was named director in January 2013, with Lawrence Kasdan and Simon Kinberg as project consultants.

Arndt worked on the script for eight months, but said he needed 18 more, which was more time than Disney or Abrams could give him. The production announced Arndt's exit from the project on October 24, 2013, and Kasdan and Abrams took over script duties. Abrams expressed relief that the release date was announced for December 2015 instead of a previously discussed summer release. He and Kasdan planned the story while walking in Santa Monica, New York City, Paris and London. The first draft was completed in six weeks. Abrams said that the key for the film was to return to the roots of the first Star Wars film and be based more on emotion than explanation. In January 2014, Abrams confirmed that the script was complete.

A fictional language was developed for use in the film by YouTube star Sara Maria Forsberg, who created the viral video series "What Languages Sound Like To Foreigners"; Forsberg developed the language by studying languages such as Hindi and Gujarati.

In April 2014, Lucasfilm clarified that Episodes VII–IX would not feature storylines from the expanded universe, though other elements could be included as with the TV series Star Wars Rebels.

Abrams stated that he purposely withheld some plot elements from Episode VII, such as Finn and Rey's last names and their backgrounds. Kennedy admitted that "we haven't mapped out every single detail [of the sequel trilogy] yet", but said that Abrams is collaborating with Episode VIII director Rian Johnson, and then Johnson will work with Episode IX director Colin Trevorrow, to ensure a smooth transition and "that everybody's got a say in how we move forward with this".

Pre-production

In May 2013, it was confirmed that Episode VII would be filmed in the United Kingdom. Representatives from Lucasfilm met with Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne to agree to produce Episode VII in the UK. Osborne committed £25 million ($37 million) of public money towards the film, claiming it was a boost for British culture and the film industry.

Beginning in September 2013, production spaces at the Bad Robot facility were converted for shooting of Episode VII for the benefit of shooting a minor portion of the film in the United States.

The film's costume designer was Michael Kaplan, who had previously worked with Abrams on Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness films. Film editors Mary Jo Markey and Maryann Brandon, also long-term collaborators with Abrams, were also signed. In August 2013, it was announced that cinematographer Daniel Mindel would be shooting the film on 35 mm film (specifically Kodak 5219). In October 2013, other crew members were confirmed, including sound designer Ben Burtt, director of photography Daniel Mindel, production designers Rick Carter and Darren Gilford, costume designer Michael Kaplan, special effects supervisor Chris Corbould, re-recording mixer Gary Rydstrom, supervising sound editor Matthew Wood, visual effects supervisor Roger Guyett, and executive producer Jason McGatlin.

Casting

The cast of Star Wars: The Force Awakens at the 2015 San Diego Comic Con International (L–R: John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Domhnall Gleeson, Gwendoline Christie, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford)

Casting began around August 2013, with Abrams meeting with potential actors for script readings and screen tests. Open auditions were held in the UK, Ireland, and the United States in November 2013 for the roles of Rachel and Thomas. Casting began in earnest in January 2014, because of changes to the script by Kasdan and Abrams. Screen tests with actors continued until at least three weeks before the official announcement on April 29, 2014, with final casting decisions made only a few weeks prior. Actors testing had strict non-disclosure agreements, preventing them, their agents or publicists from commenting on their potential involvement.

Though Lucas intimated that previous cast members Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, and Mark Hamill would return for the new film as early as March 2013, their casting was not confirmed until over a year later. Saoirse Ronan, Michael B. Jordan, and Lupita Nyong'o auditioned for new characters; industry publications reported Jesse Plemons was considered, possibly for Luke Skywalker's son; Adam Driver for an unnamed villain; and Maisie Richardson-Sellers for an unknown character. In March 2014, actor Dominic Monaghan said that Abrams was looking for three unknown actors to play the leads in Episode VII and that rumors of bigger-name stars were untrue.

Daisy Ridley was chosen for the film by February 2014, and by the end of that month a deal had been worked out with Driver, who was able to work around his Girls schedule. By March 2014, talks with Andy Serkis and Oscar Isaac began and continued into April 2014. In April, John Boyega began talks after dropping out of a Jesse Owens biopic. Denis Lawson, who played Wedge Antilles in the original trilogy, declined to reprise his role, stating that it would have "bored" him.

On April 29, 2014, the cast was announced with a photo of the first table read of the script at Pinewood Studios near London, picturing director Abrams with Ford, Ridley, Fisher, Peter Mayhew, producer Bryan Burk, Lucasfilm president and producer Kathleen Kennedy, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Hamill, Serkis, Oscar Isaac, Boyega, Driver, and writer Lawrence Kasdan. The announcement was originally planned for May 4 (Star Wars Day), but was announced early for fear of media leaks. In June 2014, cast additions Lupita Nyong'o and Gwendoline Christie were announced.

To prepare for his role, Hamill grew out his beard and was assigned a personal trainer and a nutritionist at the request of the producers, who wanted him to resemble an older Luke. Fisher was assigned a personal trainer and a nutritionist. Abrams initially considered using Daniels only in a voice role for C-3PO, but Daniels opted to reprise the role physically as well; the production team built a new C-3PO suit to accommodate him.

In May, Abrams announced a donation contest for UNICEF from the Star Wars set in Abu Dhabi; the winner was allowed to visit the set, meet members of the cast and appear in the film. In October 2014, Warwick Davis, who played Wald and Weazle in The Phantom Menace and Wicket in Return of the Jedi, announced that he would appear in The Force Awakens, but did not reveal his role. In November 2014, Debbie Reynolds confirmed that her granddaughter (Fisher's daughter), Billie Lourd, is in the film. Isaac's uncle, a Star Wars fan, was cast as an extra at the invitation of Abrams upon visiting the set.

In December 2015, The Mail reported that Ford will be paid $25 million plus a 0.5% share of the revenue. Ridley and Boyega each will receive $460,000 plus a share if the movie grosses over $1 billion. Fisher received $1.5 million and Abrams was paid $5.1 million plus a 2% share of the revenue. For the original 1977 film, Ford was paid $10,000 (equivalent to $39,000 in 2021).

Filming

Skellig Michael in Ireland (top) and former RAF Greenham Common in England served as filming locations.

In February 2014, Abrams said filming would begin in May and last about three months. The official announcement came in March, when Disney and Lucasfilm announced that principal photography would commence in May and be based at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, England. That month, it was revealed that pre-production filming would be taking place in Iceland prior to the start of official filming in May, consisting of landscape shots which would be used for scenery in the film. In April, Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn confirmed that filming had begun, filming in secret in the U.A.E. emirate of Abu Dhabi by a second-unit. Later that month, it was revealed that in addition to 35mm film, segments of the film were being shot in the 65mm IMAX format. In July, Bad Robot reported on Twitter that the film would be at least partially shot on IMAX cameras.

On May 4, 2014 (Star Wars Day), the studio posted a selfie taken by Iger with an unidentified actor in a Chewbacca costume. Iger stated the photo was taken when he visited Pinewood Studios two weeks earlier to discuss the shoot, "which was just about to start", with Abrams, Kennedy, and Horn. Principal photography began in Abu Dhabi on May 16, 2014. Abrams and members of the cast went to Abu Dhabi in early May, where large sets were built at the location, including a shuttle-like spacecraft, a large tower and a big market, and explosives were used to create a "blast crater." Cast members were spotted practicing driving vehicles that would be used during filming. Production moved to Pinewood Studios in June.

In June, Harrison Ford fractured his leg while filming at Pinewood after a hydraulic door on the Millennium Falcon set fell on him, and was taken to a hospital. According to Abrams, Ford's ankle "went to a 90-degree angle." Production was suspended for two weeks to accommodate Ford's injury. Ford's son Ben stated that Ford's ankle would likely need a plate and screws and that filming could be altered slightly, with the crew needing to shoot Ford from the waist up for a short time until he recovered. Jake Steinfeld, Ford's personal trainer, said in July that Ford was recovering rapidly. Abrams also fractured a vertebra in his own back when he was trying to help lift the door after Ford's accident. However, he kept this to himself and did not tell anyone about it for over a month. In February 2016 it was reported that the Health and Safety Executive brought four criminal charges against Disney subsidiary Foodles Production (UK) Ltd for alleged health and safety breaches relating to Ford's accident.

One of the film's storyboard artists, Simon Duric, said "The security on the film was a challenge. That script was locked in a safe. Most of the time on a film you can sit at your desk with a copy of the script next to you. On this, you couldn’t. That’s fine but it was tricky in places. We had people flying drones over Pinewood studios trying to take photographs. It was nuts. If a prop was being moved we had to have them covered in a big black sheet. We were told in an email to be [wary] of drones."

In July 2014, filming took place over three days at Skellig Michael island off the coast of County Kerry, Ireland, with a cast including Mark Hamill and Daisy Ridley. Landscape shots for the planet Takodana were shot in July in the Lake District in the north west of England. Production was halted for two weeks in early August 2014 so Abrams could rework shooting in Ford's absence and resumed with a fully healed Ford during mid-August. In September 2014, the former RAF Greenham Common military base in Berkshire, was used as a filming location and featured set constructions of several spaceships from the Star Wars Universe. Puzzlewood in the Forest of Dean was used as a location for forest scenes. Principal photography ended on November 3, 2014.

Post-production

Bad Robot Productions headquarters in Santa Monica, where Abrams supervised post-production of the film

Cinematographer Daniel Mindel stated that The Force Awakens would use real locations and scale models over computer-generated imagery to make it aesthetically similar to the original Star Wars trilogy. Rian Johnson, director of Episode VIII, reiterated that Abrams would use little CGI and more practical, traditional special effects, saying: "I think people are coming back around to [practical effects]. It feels like there is sort of that gravity pulling us back toward it. I think that more and more people are hitting kind of a critical mass in terms of the CG-driven action scene lending itself to a very specific type of action scene, where physics go out the window and it becomes so big so quick." Abrams' intention in prioritizing practical special effects was to recreate the visual realism and authenticity of the original Star Wars. To that end, the droid BB-8 was a physical prop that was developed by Disney Research, created by special effects artist Neal Scanlan and operated live on set with the actors.

In February 2014, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) announced plans to open a facility in London, citing Disney's Star Wars films as a catalyst for the expansion. ILM's Vancouver branch will also work on the special effects for the film.

Abrams supervised post-production and editing of the film at Bad Robot Productions' headquarters in Santa Monica. In August 2015, Abrams gave the estimated running time of the film as 124–125 minutes. Abrams made changes to the film's plot in the editing process to simplify the film, by removing some sequences shown in trailers: "At one point, Maz used to continue along with the characters back to the Resistance base, but we realised that she really had nothing to do there of value, except to be sitting around." The film was converted to 3D in post-production.

Music

Main article: Star Wars: The Force Awakens (soundtrack)

It's all a continuation of an initial set of ideas. It's a bit like adding paragraphs to a letter that's been going on for a number of years. Starting with a completely new film, a story that I don't know, characters that I haven't met, my whole approach to writing music is completely different—trying to find an identity, trying to find melodic identifications if that's needed for the characters, and so on.

—John Williams on returning to the Star Wars universe

In July 2013, John Williams was confirmed to compose the score. The music for the film's first two trailers was reworked from earlier Williams compositions. He began working on the film in December 2014, and by June 2015 had been through most of the film reels, working on a daily basis. In May 2015, Williams stated that he would return to themes from the previous films, such as ones for Luke, Leia and Han, in ways that "will seem very natural and right in the moments for which we've chosen to do these kinds of quotes. There aren't many of them, but there are a few that I think are important and will seem very much a part of the fabric of the piece in a positive and constructive way." He said that working with Abrams was similar to the process he went through with Lucas in the earlier films.

Recording sessions for The Force Awakens began in June 2015 at the Sony Pictures Studios' Barbra Streisand Scoring Stage in Culver City, with William Ross conducting most of the music. The first day of recording was June 1, 2015. Williams attended the sessions and conducted the remainder of the recordings.

Williams said the recording process was "very luxurious", with 12 sessions scattered over a five-month period between June and November. The score was recorded by a freelance orchestra, with sessions continuing on and off over that five-month period. The 90-piece orchestra recorded 175 minutes of music, although nearly an hour of that was discarded, modified, or rerecorded as Abrams re-edited the film. Williams's theme for Snoke was recorded by a 24-voice men's chorus. Gustavo Dudamel conducted the opening and end title music for the film at Williams' behest. Recording of the score was completed on November 14, 2015. The film's soundtrack was released by Walt Disney Records on December 18, 2015. Williams's score is more than two hours long.

Lin-Manuel Miranda and Abrams contributed music to the film's cantina scene, similar to the Mos Eisley Cantina. Abrams met Miranda at a performance of his Broadway musical Hamilton, where Miranda jokingly offered to compose the cantina music, should it be needed. Unknown to Miranda, Williams had previously told Abrams that he did not want to compose the music for that scene, wanting to focus on the orchestral score for the film. Abrams then contacted Miranda, and the two began to collaborate on the music for the scene, over a period of two months.

South Korean boy band EXO released their song "Lightsaber" in collaboration with the film for its release in their home country on November 11. The promoted track was subsequently released as part of their Sing for You album with a Chinese version, as well as also being released in Japanese. Chinese pop singer Luhan provided the Chinese theme "Inner Force" for the Chinese release of the film.

Release

Star Wars: The Force Awakens premiered in Los Angeles at the TCL Chinese Theatre, El Capitan Theatre and Dolby Theatre on December 14, 2015. A white tent stretched along Hollywood Boulevard from Orange Drive to Highland Avenue, covering the "massive" premiere event that hosted more than five thousand guests. The film was released in 12 countries including European nations (such as Italy and France, releasing it on a Wednesday), the Philippines and Thailand on December 16; 32 countries including the United Kingdom (releasing on a Thursday), Mexico and additional European, Asian, African, South American and Oceania countries on December 17; and in North America, Japan, Spain, and Venezuela on December 18, in 3D and IMAX 3D. It was released in India on December 25 and in China on January 9, 2016.

In North America, it had the widest release of December across 4,134 theaters of which 3,300 were 3D locations, a record 392 IMAX screens (13 of which are 70mm), 451 premium large format screens, 146 D-Box locations, as well as releasing in the Dolby Vision format (High dynamic range, Rec. 2020 color) in Dolby Cinema. Worldwide, it will be released across 940 IMAX theaters, a new record. On December 18, 2015, the film began playing on every IMAX screen in North America for four straight weeks up to January 14, 2016. This made it the first film since Warner Bros. Pictures' The Hobbit trilogy to receive such a release. The film finally shed some of its IMAX screens with the release of The Revenant and The Finest Hours in mid-January 2016.

On November 6, 2014, the film's title was announced as Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Similarly to The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, "Episode VII" was included in the film's opening crawl, but not in its official title. In December 2015, Pablo Hidalgo, the creative executive at the Lucasfilm Story Group which handles all the canonical continuity for the Star Wars universe, revealed that the working title for the film was Shadow of the Empire "for the longest time". Advance ticket sales for the film began on October 19, 2015, and were in strong demand, resulting in online movie ticket sites crashing. Vue Cinemas, the United Kingdom's third-largest theater chain, sold 45,000 tickets in 24 hours, 10,000 of which were sold in 90 minutes, a record for the theater. In the United States, the film pre-sold a record-breaking $6.5 million worth of IMAX ticket sales on a single day. IMAX has never previously registered more than $1 million in pre-sales on a single day. In total it sold over $50 million in pre-sales breaking the record. This number was raised to $100 million including $50–60 million in advance ticket sales by December 14. However, not all tickets that were pre-sold were for the film's opening weekend, with Fandango President Paul Yanover saying "people have set aside tickets for screenings in January, weeks after the big opening... We have people buying Star Wars [The Force Awakens] into 2016. It's not just an opening-weekend phenomenon." Similarly, the film broke pre-sales records in the UK, Canada, and Germany.

The film is the first live-action Star Wars film not to be released theatrically by 20th Century Fox; accordingly the film is not introduced with either that company's logo, or its signature fanfare composed by Alfred Newman. Shortly following Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm, the studio had indicated that the then-untitled film would be released under the "Disney|Lucasfilm" branding, similar to the branding used for Star Wars Rebels, and akin to the "Disney·Pixar" co-branding of Pixar-produced films released by Walt Disney Pictures. Ultimately, Disney's logo was absent from the film's marketing—but nevertheless, appeared on merchandise—and the film was released with only Lucasfilm's production logo shown silently before the main titles; Disney chairman Bob Iger explained the change by saying it was "for the fans".

Marketing

On November 28, 2014, Lucasfilm released an 88-second teaser trailer to promote The Force Awakens. It was screened in selected cinemas across the United States and Canada and in theaters worldwide in December 2014. It was also released on YouTube and the iTunes Store, generating a record 58.2 million views on YouTube in its first week. Critics compared the brief footage favorably to the production values of the original trilogy. The Hollywood Reporter called the trailer "perfectly potent nostalgia", praising its mix of old and new. Empire was impressed by the continuity with the first films – "the feel of classic Star Wars" – but noted the absence of Hamill, Ford, and Fisher and speculated about the significance of the new characters. The Guardian wrote that the use of the Star Wars fanfare by John Williams reinforced brand loyalty among fans.

Large-scale outdoor advertising for Star Wars: The Force Awakens in the city centre of Nuremberg, Germany

On December 11, 2014, Abrams and Kennedy released a series of eight mock Topps trading cards revealing the names of several characters. On April 16, 2015, a second teaser trailer, this one lasting two minutes, was shown at the opening panel at the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, California. Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said the reaction to the trailer was "staggering... the entire room of almost eight thousand people just leapt to their feet and roared, I mean I can't think of anything I've ever been to – other than a rock concert – that felt quite like that." The trailer was viewed over 88 million times within the first 24 hours of release, breaking the record. According to the Guinness World Records, the second teaser trailer amassed 30.65 million in 24 hours, setting a new world record for the "most viewed movie trailer on YouTube in 24 hours." The event was broadcast live by Verizon on YouTube, StarWars.com and in movie theaters. The trailer shows many of the new characters and the first footage of Chewbacca and Han Solo. The Huffington Post's Graham Milne wrote that the trailer "was an affirmation of something that we'd long been told was never going to happen. This was a gift. This was faith rewarded. About damn time."

Vanity Fair was the first magazine to release an exclusive cover issue devoted to The Force Awakens. The magazine, released on May 7, 2015, featured exclusive interviews and photos of the cast photographed by Annie Leibovitz. At the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con International, in addition to a panel with many of the actors, a behind-the-scenes look at the film demonstrated the film's use of practical sets and effects. It was positively received, with Nigel M. Smith of The Guardian writing: "The featurette's angle is a strong one and connects with fans of the original trilogy in an incredibly poignant way. It also does a sly job of teasing Fisher's new look as Leia and Simon Pegg's mysterious involvement as a rumored alien in the movie, without actually showing the actors in action." Smith compared the marketing strategy for the film to that of a previous Abrams film, Super 8, saying "the promos... are notable for what they tease, not what they give away."

Walt Disney Studios and Lucasfilm presented a look at The Force Awakens at Disney's D23 Expo in August 2015. Drew Struzan—who designed the poster artwork for the previous Star Wars films—produced a commemorative poster given to the event's attendees. In October 2015, Lucasfilm unveiled the theatrical release poster and a third trailer. The poster omitted Luke Skywalker and revealed a Death Star-like "orb." The trailer debuted during the halftime break of Monday Night Football, before being released online. The reaction to the trailer by fans on social media was "frenzied", with Lizo Mzimba of the BBC writing that "perhaps the most significant thing about the final trailer before the film's release is how little of the story it reveals." Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph felt the trailer was "a perfect blend of old and new, in keeping with the old-fashioned Star Wars aesthetic." The trailer received 128 million views in 24 hours, a new record for the most views of a trailer in 24 hours. 16 million of the views came from its airing on Monday Night Football. At the end of October, Air France announced a "Flight and Cinema" package, providing customers who book select flights to Paris transportation to a theater to see the film, since France is one of the first countries to release the film. On November 6, a Japanese trailer for the film was released. After seeing the new trailer Forbes' Ollie Barder stated the trailer gave him "hope" that the film would not "let us all down like the prequels did... [with] a worthwhile story this time." On November 23, a partnership with Google was announced, in which Google users could choose to affiliate themselves with either the Dark or Light Side, which would change the appearance of their Google websites. Additionally, Disney teamed up with Verizon to create a virtual-reality experience for Google Cardboard.

On December 17, 2015, select theaters across North America aired a Star Wars marathon, airing the six previous Star Wars episode films in 2D, followed by The Force Awakens in 3D. Attendees received a special lanyard featuring exclusive marathon art.

Tie-in literature and merchandise

Disney Publishing Worldwide and Lucasfilm announced a series of "at least" 20 books and comics, titled "Journey to Star Wars: The Force Awakens", with releases from multiple publishers starting in late 2015, prior to the film's premiere. The series includes books by Del Rey and Disney-Lucasfilm publishers and comic books from Marvel Comics. All titles under the program are canonical to the Star Wars universe. Alan Dean Foster wrote a novelization of The Force Awakens which was released in e-book form on December 18. In an effort to avoid revealing plot details before the film's release, the print release of the novelization was delayed until January 2016. Marvel Comics will publish a five-issue comic book adaptation of The Force Awakens beginning in June 2016.

Disney Consumer Products and Lucasfilm announced that September 4, 2015 would be deemed "Force Friday" and would be the official launch of all the merchandise for The Force Awakens. Beginning at 12:01 am, fans could buy toys, books, clothing and various other products at Disney Stores and other retailers throughout the world. Disney and Maker Studios hosted an 18-hour live-streaming presentation on YouTube, showcasing multiple merchandise products beginning on September 3, 2015. Among these products were a remote-controlled BB-8 developed by Sphero. Sphero had participated in a Disney-run startup accelerator in July 2014, where they were invited into a private meeting with Disney CEO Bob Iger, in which they were shown on-set photos and imagery of BB-8 before its public unveiling. Many retailers were unable to meet demand for Star Wars products.

Home media

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released Star Wars: The Force Awakens via download and Disney Movies Anywhere on April 1, 2016, with a Blu-ray and DVD released on April 5. The home media release contains additional footage. On March 23, 2016, the film was leaked online prior to its original Blu-ray release and was downloaded more than two million times in twelve hours.

In January 2016, it was confirmed that Starz would hold the U.S. premium television rights for The Force Awakens, having been released just before the end of Starz's output deal covering most Disney-released films, which includes releases through the end of 2015. The equivalent rights in Canada will be held by Netflix.

Reception

Box office

Main article: List of box office records set by Star Wars: The Force Awakens

As of May 30, 2016, Star Wars: The Force Awakens has grossed $936.7 million in North America and $1.13 billion in other territories for a worldwide total of $2.067 billion. Box Office Mojo estimates that the film has sold more than 100 million tickets in the US so far. The Force Awakens earned 8.6% of the total 2015 releases in North America, which is second only to the 8.8% of 1997 box office earned by Titanic in 1997. The film is the highest-grossing release of 2015, the highest-grossing film in the franchise (surpassing The Phantom Menace), the highest-grossing film released by Walt Disney Studios, the highest-ever grossing film in North America (dethroning Avatar), and the third-highest-grossing film of all time. It was the 24th film in cinematic history to surpass $1 billion worldwide, standing as the fastest film to surpass the mark, doing so in 12 days. It was the third film in history to surpass $2 billion worldwide, doing so on its 53rd day of release. Deadline.com calculated the net profit of the film to be $780.1 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues for the film, making it the most profitable film of 2015 and the most profitable film in the last seven years.

Theatrical run

The Force Awakens was released in the United States and Canada on December 18, 2015. It made a record-breaking $57 million from Thursday night previews, of which IMAX screenings generated a record-breaking $5.7 million from 391 screens. On its opening day, the film grossed $119.1 million from 14,300 screens, marking the biggest single and opening day record and the first time a film has earned more than $100 million in a single day. Without Thursday night grosses, the film earned the second largest opening-day gross ($62.1 million). In total, it earned a record $247,966,675 for its debut weekend from nearly 28.8 million tickets sold, including an IMAX opening-weekend record of $30.1 million (12.65%) from 391 IMAX theaters, which nearly amounts to the $252.5 million total earned by Return of the Jedi – the 2nd lowest-grossing film in the series – in its original run. Minus the $57 million it earned from previews, the film earned $190.8 million on straight Friday to Sunday, giving it an average of $63.6 million per day. 2D screenings accounted for 53% of the total opening gross while 3D accounted for 47%. RealD 3D comprised $78 million of the opening gross, setting a new record. Other records set by the film include the biggest weekend per-theater average for a wide release ($59,982 per theater), biggest holiday opening, biggest PG-13 rated opening, and biggest December opening. The opening-weekend audience was evenly split among those under and over the age of 25, with 58% of the audience male, 71% adults, 20% families and 9% teenagers.

Internationally, the film was released in over 30,000 screens. It opened on December 16, 2015 in 12 international markets and earned $14.1 million on its opening day, debuting at first place in all of them. It expanded in an additional 42 countries on December 17, generating $58.6 million for a two-day international total of $72.7 million, reaching first place in all 44 markets. It grossed a total of $129.5 million in three days after adding $56.8 million on its third day, topped the daily box office in all countries except for South Korea where it was the second, and set a new midnight record in the United Kingdom with $3.6 million. It broke opening day records in the UK, Ireland and Malta ($14.3 million), Germany ($7.1 million), Australia ($6.8 million), Sweden ($1.7 million), Norway ($1.1 million) and in 16 other countries. Other markets which generated large opening days were Spain ($3.5 million), Mexico ($3.4 million), Italy ($3.1 million) and Japan ($3 million). After the five days, The Force Awakens had a total international opening gross of $281 million from 30,000 screens in 72 markets, a new record for December opening and the third biggest international opening of all time. International markets generating opening weekend tallies of at least $10 million were the United Kingdom, Ireland and Malta ($50.6 million), Germany ($27.5 million), France ($22.5 million), Australia ($19.6 million) and Japan ($13.4 million) and Russia ($12.3 million). The film had the biggest opening of all time in 18 countries including the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Russia and Sweden. IMAX generated $17.9 million from 276 IMAX theaters.

After five days, the film had a total worldwide opening record of $529 million from 74 territories, which is the biggest worldwide opening, making it only the second time in cinematic history – after Jurassic World – that a film had opened to more than $500 million globally. This included an IMAX opening record of $48 million.

Revenues in the film's second weekend decreased by only 39.8% in the United States and Canada, earning $149.2 million, to remain in first place at the box office and recording the biggest second weekend of all time. Revenues from IMAX also dipped slightly, generating $19 million in its second weekend, for a record total of over $70 million in 10 days. Internationally, the film had a steeper decline in its second weekend, falling 51% to $136.9 million. Of the notable major markets, the film had an unsuccessful opening in India where it opened third against two local blockbusters with a mere $1.51 million. As of February 21, the largest markets outside of the United States and Canada are the United Kingdom ($180.7 million), China ($124.5 million), Germany ($109.7 million), Japan ($92.6 million) and France ($88.2 million).

The Force Awakens crossed the $1 billion mark on the 12th day of its general release (December 26, 2015), making it the fastest film to reach this mark. It became the twenty-fourth film grossing more than $1 billion worldwide, and the fifth film of 2015 to do so, making 2015 the first year to have five films gross more than $1 billion. The film experienced another decrease in revenue in its third weekend, dropping 40.8% to $88.2 domestically, remaining in first place at the box office, to set a third-weekend record.

On January 2, after just 16 days of release, it became the second film (following Avatar) to gross over $700 million in North America, and on January 6 became the highest-grossing film of all time domestically, doing so in 20 days. On January 9, it became the first film in cinematic history to cross $800 million domestically unadjusted for inflation, and in the same weekend set a Saturday to Sunday opening weekend record for the studio in China with $52.6 million. On January 17, 2016, it passed the $1 billion mark overseas becoming the first film of Disney, the third film of 2015 and the fifth film overall to achieve this feat. It topped the international box office chart for five consecutive weekends, becoming the first film since Avengers: Age of Ultron to have five straight wins, before being dethroned by The Revenant in its sixth weekend. In Japan, it topped the box office for six straight weekends.

On February 5, The Force Awakens became the first film to earn over $900 million in the United States and Canada, doing so on its fiftieth day of release, becoming the first film to reach that milestone unadjusted for inflation. On the following day, it became the third film in cinematic history to pass $2 billion in ticket sales worldwide (after Titanic and Avatar) and the second in original release (after Avatar). Also, it became the third film to earn over $600 million in Europe. In North America and the United Kingdom and Ireland, it fell outside of the top ten for the first time in its eleventh weekend respectively during the weekend February 26–28, 2016, and in the U.S. it fell off $1 million for the first time in its fourteenth weekend.

Commercial analysis

With a production budget of $306 million, plus $175 million for marketing, printing and advertising costs, The Force Awakens was predicted to be a major box office success. The cost of the film was subsidized by £31.6 million ($47 million USD) from the UK film incentive program. Total costs, after accounting for profit participations, production and distribution of home videos, as well as other ancillary mediums, is expected to run $423 million. Reports in April 2015 from The Hollywood Reporter and Amboee Brand Intelligence predicted the film would earn up to $540 million worldwide for its opening, breaking the record for the biggest worldwide opening, as well as breaking the record for the biggest U.S. opening. They also believed that The Force Awakens would have the widest release ever, across 4,500 theaters in North America. But it ended receiving a total of 4,134 theaters, and nevertheless had the widest December opening. Box office analyst, Phil Contrino likened the film to Avatar (2009), which opened to $77 million in North America and went on to earn $2.8 billion worldwide, saying The Force Awakens would earn $1 billion "without blinking" and could cross $2 billion. In August 2015, Deadline.com predicted an opening weekend of $615 million worldwide could be possible, including a $300 million opening in North America. In November, box office analysts reported opening weekend projections were at $175–250 million. In December, capital analyst Barton Crockett suggested that the film will be the first to gross over $3 billion worldwide at the box office.

Analysts said that the box office receipts of the film, when compared to predecessors, must be adjusted for inflation, and that the first Star Wars film made more when this adjustment is made. It has further been observed that each of the first three films in the series was more profitable in calculating revenue against production costs. Paul Dergarabedian, one of Hollywood's best-known box office analysts, said that while Avatar and The Force Awakens were both released on the same date of December 18, higher ticket prices in 2015 and IMAX screenings could push Star Wars "into the box office stratosphere". On December 23, Mark Hughes of Forbes stated that The Force Awakens had matched the most optimistic projections for its opening, and he predicted that The Force Awakens would likely surpass Titanic as the second-highest-grossing film of all time. He also stated that The Force Awakens could catch Avatar as the top-grossing film of all time, but only if it managed to avoid major week-to-week declines in ticket sales.

By January 13, analysts concluded that it was unlikely that The Force Awakens would surpass Avatar's global gross. While The Force Awakens is hugely successful in North America, the same success was not witnessed in many overseas individual markets such as Germany, India, Latin America, and parts of Asia. One cited reason for this is that overseas audiences do not have the same nostalgia or affinity for the film as those in the U.S. The Star Wars franchise has also traditionally lacked resonance with filmgoers in China, which is why part of the marketing for The Force Awakens heavily focused on appealing to that territory. Pamela McClintock stated that, for these territories, Star Wars "doesn't have the same legacy as it does in North America and more mature markets. It's also a faster burn, meaning it likely won't stay in theaters as long as Avatar did." Dergarabedian said, "As in all box-office trajectories, the higher the altitude, the tougher it becomes to rack up sales at the kind of breakneck pace as in the beginning of the run."

Nancy Tartaglione of Deadline.com argued that, if accounting for its 40/60 domestic to international split, The Force Awakens did well overseas. Avatar did well internationally because of its novelty, the marketing campaign advertising it as showcasing the newest 3D technology that can only be fully appreciated in the theaters, and because of its extended time in overseas theaters. While The Force Awakens had appeal with its special effects, analysts feel that it lacked the novelty factor; they also cite that its gross was additionally stilted due to markets making way for new films sooner than was previously done. Films do not play in overseas theaters as long as they did back when Avatar was released. Dergarabedian stated, "No matter what, [The Force Awakens] is an absolute, all-out blockbuster without peer in terms of the sheer speed at which it has crossed all of these major box-office milestones." Moreover, Mike Fleming of Deadline.com argued that the movie was the "most valuable movie" of the year, with "the net profit to Disney an astounding $923M, and the Cash on Cash Return twice that of any other film [released in 2016], at 2.31".

Critical response

Star Wars: The Force Awakens received mostly positive reviews from critics. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 92% approval rating, based on 353 reviews, with a rating average of 8.2/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Packed with action and populated by both familiar faces and fresh blood, The Force Awakens successfully recalls the series' former glory while injecting it with renewed energy." On Metacritic, the film has a score of 81 out of 100, based on 52 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". On CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale; women, under-25s and under-18s gave it an "A+", while 98% of audiences gave it an "A" or "B".

Robbie Collin of The Daily Telegraph gave The Force Awakens five stars out of five and wrote that it "sets out to shake Star Wars from its slumber, and reconnect the series with its much-pined-for past. That it achieves this both immediately and joyously is perhaps the single greatest relief of the movie-going year." Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave it five stars out of five, writing that it was "both a narrative progression from the earlier three films and a shrewdly affectionate next-gen reboot ... ridiculous and melodramatic and sentimental of course, but exciting and brimming with energy and its own kind of generosity." Variety's Justin Chang wrote that the film has "sufficient style, momentum, love and care to prove irresistible to any who have ever considered themselves fans." Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film four stars out of four, describing it as "a beautiful, thrilling, joyous, surprising and heart-thumping adventure." Tom Long of The Detroit News wrote that though some may find the film too similar to the original Star Wars, it leaves "the ungainly and unneeded clumsiness of the subsequent prequels far behind ... the energy, humor and simplicity of direction [has] been recaptured." The Associated Press called it "basically the same" as the original film, but "isn't that what we all wanted anyway?"

Ann Hornaday, writing for The Washington Post, thought the film had "enough novelty to create yet another cohort of die-hard fans ... The Force Awakens strikes all the right chords, emotional and narrative, to feel both familiar and exhilaratingly new." Christopher Orr, writing in The Atlantic, called the film "a mashup masterpiece" that "may be completely derivative" but is "a delight nonetheless." The Charlotte Observer's Lawrence Toppman said Abrams had "pulled off a delicate balancing act, paying clever homage to the past." Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle gave the film his highest rating and called it "the best Star Wars sequel yet and one of the best films of 2015." Frank Pallotta, reviewing the film for CNN Money, found it was the best Star Wars film since the original trilogy and that it "is bound to be a film experience long remembered by fans and non-fans alike." Jack Bottomley, writing for Starburst, awarded the film 10 out of 10 saying, "From old joys to fresh twists, this is a unique blockbuster experience that celebrates the franchise whilst also expanding it."

Some critics found the film too derivative of previous Star Wars films. Andrew O'Hehir wrote for Salon that it was "the work of a talented mimic or ventriloquist who can just about cover for the fact that he has nothing much to say." Stephanie Zacharek of Time wrote that Abrams had delivered "everything we expect, as opposed to those nebulous wonders we didn't know we wanted." Reviewing for Forbes, Scott Mendelson cited the film's "top-tier production values and a strong sense of scale and scope", but felt it was so much "an exercise in fan service [that] it is only due to the charisma and talent of our newbies and J. J. Abrams' undeniable skill as a visual storyteller that the Mad Libs narrative doesn't outright destroy the picture." Brian Merchant wrote for Motherboard: "Science fiction is supposed to be all about exploring the unexplored, not rehashing the well-trod ... one of the most unabashedly creative enterprises of the 20th century has been rendered another largely enjoyable, but mostly forgettable Hollywood reboot."

Accolades

Main article: List of accolades received by Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Several awards held their nominations before the December release of The Force Awakens, making the film ineligible for the 73rd Golden Globe Awards and some other awards ceremonies. However, the film was added to the 21st Critics' Choice Awards's slate of best picture nominees after a special vote by the board of directors, and the announcement of the 2015 American Film Institute Awards was delayed until after the release of The Force Awakens. The film received five Academy Award nominations and became the most Saturn Award-nominated film in history, receiving fifteen nominations.

Awards and nominations
Association	Date of ceremony	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
Academy Awards	February 28, 2016	Best Original Score	John Williams	Nominated
		Best Sound Editing	Matthew Wood, David Acord	Nominated
		Best Sound Mixing	Andy Nelson, Christopher Scarabosio, Stuart Wilson	Nominated
		Best Film Editing	Maryann Brandon, Mary Jo Markey	Nominated
		Best Visual Effects	Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan, Chris Corbould	Nominated
Alliance of Women Film Journalists	February 12, 2016	Best Female Action Star	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
		Best Breakthrough Performance	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
American Cinema Editors	January 29, 2016	Best Edited Feature Film – Dramatic	Maryann Brandon, Mary Jo Markey	Nominated
American Film Institute	December 12, 2015	Top 10 Films of the Year	—	Won
Art Directors Guild	January 31, 2016	Excellence in Production Design – Fantasy Film	Rick Carter, Darren Gilford	Nominated
British Academy Film Awards	February 14, 2016	Best Original Music	John Williams	Nominated
		Best Sound	David Acord, Andy Nelson, Christopher Scarabosio, Matthew Wood, Stuart Wilson	Nominated
		Best Production Design	Rick Carter, Darren Gilford, Lee Sandales	Nominated
		Best Special Visual Effects	Chris Corbould, Roger Guyett, Paul Kavanagh, Neal Scanlan	Won
Casting Society of America	January 21, 2016	Big Budget – Drama	Nina Gold, April Webster, Alyssa Weisberg, Jessica Sherman	Nominated
Central Ohio Film Critics Association	January 7, 2016	Best Picture	—	Nominated
		Actor of the Year	Domhnall Gleeson (Also for Brooklyn, Ex Machina, and The Revenant)	Runner-up
		Breakthrough Film Artist	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
		Best Film Editing	Maryann Brandon, Mary Jo Markey	Nominated
Costume Designers Guild	February 23, 2016	Excellence in Fantasy Film	Michael Kaplan	Nominated
Critics’ Choice Movie Awards	January 17, 2016	Best Picture	Kathleen Kennedy, J. J. Abrams, Bryan Burk	Nominated
Denver Film Critics Society	January 11, 2016	Best Science Fiction/Horror Film	Kathleen Kennedy, J. J. Abrams, Bryan Burk	Nominated
		Best Visual Effects	Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan, Chris Corbould	Nominated
		Best Score	John Williams	Nominated
Empire Awards	March 20, 2016	Best Film	Kathleen Kennedy, J. J. Abrams, Bryan Burk	Nominated
		Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Film	Kathleen Kennedy, J. J. Abrams, Bryan Burk	Won
		Best Director	J. J. Abrams	Won
		Best Male Newcomer	John Boyega	Won
		Best Female Newcomer	Daisy Ridley	Won
		Best Costume Design	Michael Kaplan	Nominated
		Best Make-Up and Hairstyling	Neal Scanlan	Nominated
		Best Visual Effects	Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan, Chris Corbould	Won
		Best Production Design	Rick Carter, Darren Gilford, Alastair Bullock, Gary Tomkins	Nominated
Florida Film Critics Circle	December 23, 2015	Best Score	John Williams	Nominated
		Best Visual Effects	Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan, Chris Corbould	Runner-up
		Breakout Award	Daisy Ridley	Won
Georgia Film Critics Association	January 8, 2016	Best Production Design	Rick Carter, Darren Gilford, Alastair Bullock, Gary Tomkins	Nominated
		Best Ensemble	—	Nominated
		Best Original Score	John Williams	Nominated
		Breakthrough Award	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
Golden Schmoes	January 8, 2016	Favorite Movie		Runner-up
		Best Sci-Fi Movie		Won
		Most Overrated Movie		Nominated
		Best Director	J. J. Abrams	Nominated
		Best Special Effects		Won
		Best Actress	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
		Breakthrough Performance	John Boyega	Nominated
			Daisy Ridley	Nominated
		Coolest Character	Han Solo	Nominated
			Kylo Ren	Nominated
			Rey	Nominated
		Best Music	John Williams	Nominated
		Favorite Movie Poster		Won
		Best Trailer		Won
		Best Action Sequence	Final Battle at Starkiller Base	Nominated
		Most Memorable Scene	Kylo Ren kills his father	Won
		Best Line	“Chewie. We’re home.”	Runner-up
Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild	February 20, 2016	Feature Motion Picture – Best Special Makeup Effects	Neal Scanlan	Nominated
MTV Movie Awards	April 10, 2016	Movie of the Year	—	Won
		Best Female Performance	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
		Breakthrough Performance	Daisy Ridley	Won
			John Boyega	Nominated
		Best Fight	Daisy Ridley vs. Adam Driver	Nominated
		Best Villain	Adam Driver	Won
		Best Action Performance	John Boyega	Nominated
		Best Virtual Performance	Andy Serkis	Nominated
			Lupita Nyong’o	Nominated
		Ensemble Cast	—	Nominated
		Best Hero	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards	March 12, 2016	Favorite Movie	—	Won
		Favorite Movie Actor	John Boyega	Nominated
		Favorite Movie Actress	Daisy Ridley	Nominated
		Favorite Book	Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need To Know	Nominated
Online Film & Television Association Awards	February 14, 2016	Best Breakthrough Performance Male	John Boyega	Nominated
		Best Breakthrough Performance Female	Daisy Ridley	Runner-up
		Best Voice-Over Performance	Lupita Nyong’o	Nominated
		Best Ensemble	—	Nominated
		Best Original Score	John Williams	Nominated
		Best Film Editing		Nominated
		Best Sound		Runner-up
		Best Sound Effects		Runner-up
		Best Visual Effects		Won
		Best Stunt Coordination		Nominated
		Best Movie Trailer		Won
		Best Movie Poster		Runner-up
Saturn Awards	June 2016	Best Science Fiction Film	—	Pending
		Best Director	J. J. Abrams	Pending
		Best Writing	Lawrence Kasdan, J. J. Abrams, and Michael Arndt	Pending
		Best Actor	John Boyega	Pending
			Harrison Ford	Pending
		Best Actress	Daisy Ridley	Pending
		Best Supporting Actor	Adam Driver	Pending
		Best Supporting Actress	Carrie Fisher	Pending
			Lupita Nyong’o	Pending
		Best Music	John Williams	Pending
		Best Editing	Maryann Brandon and Mary Jo Markey	Pending
		Best Production Design	Rick Carter and Darren Gilford	Pending
		Best Costume Design	Michael Kaplan	Pending
		Best Make-up	Neal Scanlan	Pending
		Best Special Effects	Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Neal Scanlan, and Chris Corbould	Pending
Visual Effects Society	February 2, 2016	Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature	Roger Guyett, Luke O’Byrne, Patrick Tubach, Paul Kavanagh, Chris Corbould	Won
		Outstanding Created Environment in a Photoreal Feature	Yanick Dusseault, Mike Wood, Justin van der Lek, Quentin Marmier (for Falcon Chase / Graveyard)	Won
		Outstanding Animated Performance in a Photoreal Feature	Joel Bodin, Arslan Elver, Ian Comley, Stephen Cullingford (for Maz Kanata)	Nominated
		Outstanding Virtual Cinematography in a Photoreal Project	Paul Kavanagh, Colin Benoit, Susumu Yukuhiro, Greg Salter (for Falcon Chase / Graveyard)	Won
		Outstanding Compositing in a Photoreal Feature	Jay Cooper, Marian Mavrovic, Jean Lapointe, Alex Prichard	Nominated
		Outstanding Models in a Photoreal or Animated Project	Joshua Lee, Matthew Denton, Landis Fields, Cyrus Jam (for BB-8)	Won
		Outstanding Effects Simulations in a Photoreal Feature	Rick Hankins, Dan Bornstein, John Doublestein, Gary Wu (for Starkiller Base)	Nominated

Top ten lists

In addition to several awards and nominations, The Force Awakens appeared on several critics' lists of the ten best films of 2015.

• 1st – Peter Howell, The Toronto Star
• 2nd – Bob Thompson, The Vancouver Sun
• 3rd – Total Film
• 4th – Digital Spy
• 4th – Rod Pocowatchit, The Wichita Eagle
• 4th – Troy L. Smith, The Plain Dealer
• 5th – Empire
• 5th – Wired
• 5th – Collin Souter, RogerEbert.com
• 6th – Michael Smith, Tulsa World
• 6th – Twitch Film
• 7th – Matthew Jacobs, The Huffington Post
• 7th – Peter Debruge, Variety
• 8th – Matt Fagerholm, RogerEbert.com
• 9th – Sean P. Means, The Salt Lake Tribune
• 9th – Christopher Orr, The Atlantic
• 9th – Richard Roeper, The Chicago Sun-Times
• 9th – Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
• 10th – Robbie Collin, The Daily Telegraph
• 10th – Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – American Film Institute
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – Joe Leydon, Variety
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – Nell Minow, RogerEbert.com
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – Joe Morgenstern, The Wall Street Journal
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – Katherine Tulich, RogerEbert.com
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – Calvin Wilson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
• Top 10 (ordered alphabetically) – Brian Truitt, USA Today

Sequels

Episode VIII

Main article: Star Wars: Episode VIII

Rian Johnson confirmed in August 2014 that he would direct Episode VIII. It is scheduled for release on December 15, 2017. Some second-unit filming took place in September 2015 in Ireland, with principal photography beginning in February 2016 at Pinewood Studios. Hamill, Fisher, Driver, Ridley, Boyega, Isaac, Nyong'o, Gleeson, Daniels, Christie, Serkis, and Mayhew will reprise their roles in the film, and are joined by Benicio del Toro, Laura Dern and Kelly Marie Tran. Jimmy Vee will replace Baker as R2-D2.

Episode IX

Further information: Star Wars: Episode IX

In August 2015, Colin Trevorrow was announced as the director of Episode IX, scheduled for release on May 24, 2019.

See also

• List of Star Wars films and television series
• Cultural impact of Star Wars

External links

• Star Wars: The Force Awakens at Starwars.com
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens at IMDb
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens at AllMovie
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens at Rotten Tomatoes
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens at Box Office Mojo
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens at Metacritic
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens on Wookieepedia, a Star Wars wiki