J.J. Abrams Explains 'Mistake' in 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'
Hint: It has to do with Rey, Chewie and Leia.
— -- SPOILERS AHEAD if you haven't seen "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." But if you haven't, why are you reading this?
Well, now that that's out of the way, director J.J. Abrams spoke to SlashFilm this week about his new movie "10 Cloverfield Lane," but he also took some time out to explain a "mistake" he said he made in the record-breaking "Force Awakens."
After the crew returns from Starkiller Base, General Leia hugs Rey, a person she's never met before, instead of Chewie. This had people talking, especially since Han Solo, Leia's husband and Chewie's best friend, had just been killed ... by Han and Leia's own son! So why did Leia ignore the giant fuzzball in his time of need in favor of a perfect stranger?
Put down your pitchforks. In the interview, Abrams insisted there is a reason for this.
"That was probably one of the mistakes I made in that. My thinking at the time was that Chewbacca, despite the pain he was feeling, was focused on trying to save Finn and getting him taken care of. So I tried to have Chewbacca go off with him and focus on Rey, and then have Rey find Leia and Leia find Rey," Abrams told the site.
"The idea being that both of them being strong with the Force and never having met, would know about each other -- that Leia would have been told about her beyond what we saw on-screen and Rey of course would have learned about Leia. And that reunion would be a meeting and a reunion all in one, and a sort of commiseration of their mutual loss."
But Abrams said the shot could have been filmed differently, not leaving audiences to start their conspiracy theories about Rey and Leia's connection. (Could she be her daughter, etc.)
"Had Chewbacca not been where he was, you probably wouldn’t have thought of it. But because he was right there, passed by Leia, it felt almost like a slight, which was definitely not the intention," he added.
Rey could still be connected to the Skywalker family, but at least this explains that scene ... or does it?! It's not like Abrams hasn't misled us before. (Cough, Khan, cough, cough).
"Star Wars: Episode VIII" opens in theaters in late 2017, so we have a while to wait to find out.