The world premiere of the hugely anticipated Star Wars film, The Force Awakens, was staged on Monday across three cinemas in Los Angeles.
Audiences at the Hollywood and Highland complex reserved their biggest cheers for the stars and creators of the original Star Wars trilogy, which was in cinemas between 1977 and 1983 and ushered in the current blockbuster era. Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill, who will reprise their roles as Leia (now General) Organa, Han Solo and Luke Skywalker, all received huge roars – and there was a standing ovation for Star Wars creator George Lucas.
We probably'll be stuck in traffic thru first hour of film..bomb dogs currently sniffing the car-almost there pic.twitter.com/KjweJC2fqs
— Carrie Fisher (@carrieffisher) December 15, 2015
Disney chief Bob Iger thanked director JJ Abrams for delivering “a film that exceeded even our loftiest dreams and expectations”. Early reaction on social media by premiere attendees suggested the new film could be a hit.
The premiere was one of the most elaborate to take place in Hollywood and was said to involve preparations far beyond those required for the Oscars. Disney erected a huge tent, covering four blocks of Hollywood Boulevard in an effort to maintain secrecy outside the Chinese, Dolby and El Capitan theatres. Security was tight, with metal detectors and police dogs on hand to check bags, as well as 50 police officers.
Not everything ran smoothly. Fisher was stuck in traffic and almost missed the event, and then she was held up by security. The notoriously off-message comic and writer, who swore like a stormtrooper on the red carpet, described her younger self during a live camera feed: “She was very busy partying, partying to make sure I would look like shit later. And I don’t mean shit. By shit, I mean not as good as in the other sense.”
There were plenty of stars in attendance, many dressing as Star Wars characters: The Dark Knight Rises’ Joseph Gordon-Levitt turned up as a DIY Yoda, Rainn Wilson came as Obi-Wan Kenobi and Sofia Vergara sported Leia-esque “buns”. The younger heroes and villains of the new episode, John Boyega (Finn), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron), Daisy Ridley (Rey) and Adam Driver (Kylo Ren) also received enthusiastic cheers from onlookers.
Lucas told reporters on the red carpet that he was amazed by what the franchise had become. “I didn’t think it would be this big when it started,” he said. “It started out wanting to do a film for young people that had psychological undercurrents for people who were going through adolescence – everything from mythological themes to spiritual themes. In the end, I think that is the thing that resonated with people.”
The film-maker, who sold all rights to Star Wars to Disney in October 2012, said the space saga eventually boiled down to just one thing – “families.” He said: “It’s about what one generation leaves behind and the next generation has to deal with.”
The Force Awakens opens in the US on 18 December, a day after the film’s UK release. Some fans have been queuing to be among the first to see the film , at the Chinese theatre since early December. The Force Awakens is expected to be the highest grossing movie of 2016 and could challenge Avatar’s $2.7bn (£1.78bn) as the most successful film at the global box office.
