Among the many ways that The Last Jedi broke from Star Wars trilogy conventions, the most immediately noticeable was that it took place right after the events of The Force Awakens, as if no time at all had passed. Chronological gaps between the movies have consistently shortened as the linear timeline progresses, with Anakin Skywalker going from child to young adult between I and II, and an entire major war being skipped between II and III. The original trilogy mostly treated its gaps like the real time between films, but we’ve all been wondering whether Rian Johnson‘s various swerves were a future pattern or an anomaly. And thanks to a scanned image from an upcoming issue of Empire magazine that’s been making the rounds, we might have an answer.
John Boyega has confirmed that Star Wars: Episode #IX takes place ONE YEAR after the events of ‘The Last Jedi’. [Empire Issue] pic.twitter.com/wC8iOV9Bv6
— Star Wars Stuff (@starwarstuff) December 22, 2018
One significant caveat: the article says John Boyega has confirmed it takes place one year after the last film, but it doesn’t offer a direct quote or a source for that. We do know, thanks to Slashfilm, that Boyega has been growing out his hair, so it definitely won’t be taking place immediately after the Falcon leaves Crait. And we also know that they’re using footage shot for The Force Awakens to get Leia in the movie, so that will require a transition as well.This gives them all time to get new outfits to refresh the toy line as well.
Image: Lucasfilm
