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How 'The Last Jedi' Could Connect to the Prequels and the Force

There is one dark lord lurking in the background of the galaxy in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and it’s not Supreme Leader Snoke. George Lucas still “whispers” in the ear of Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy.

On Monday, Entertainment Weekly revealed a comment made by Kathleen Kennedy back in April during Star Wars Celebration. When asked if Lucas still offers ideas about the new Star Wars films, Kennedy said “not really,” but did admit that Lucas sometimes offered insight about “something specific or important to him about Jedi training.” Of course, this doesn’t mean Kennedy, or Rian Johnson or J.J. Abrams are required to listen to anything Lucas says, but it is interesting, if only because it’s already clear that The Last Jedi will deal with the history of the Force which predates George Lucas’s prequel trilogy.

In terms of moving the story of Luke, Han and Leia forward, it makes a sense that Lucas would have to let go. And even though he made a few snide comments about the The Force Awakens, which he later retracted, it seems like George Lucas is settling into the idea that Star Wars is in the hands of another generation, at least in terms of its future.

But what about its past?

By the looks of it, The Last Jedi is set to delve deep into previously unknown lore and secrets about the Jedi order. Whereas the prequels only showed the Jedi a few decades prior to the classic films, Luke Skywalker is hanging out in what could be the first Jedi Temple, with the Caretakers, aliens who guard ancient knowledge about the Force. In the trailers, there are really old books associated with this history, a first for Star Wars insofar as paper has never been depicted in the saga prior to this moment. When you stop to think about how much ancient Force-knowledge is being explored and possibly retconned, it suddenly makes a lot of sense that George Lucas would have slightly more investment in this movie, than The Force Awakens.

If Luke does end up training Rey to become a Jedi, it stands to reason that he might be a little more thorough than Yoda and Obi-Wan were with him.

Connections to the time before the prequels isn’t a bad thing, of course. And if Lucas is putting his blessing on new aspects of the Jedi beliefs, it could help fans forget — and forgive — everything about midichlorians.

The Last Jedi opens on December 15.

 

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