The final movie in the Skywalker saga – and the third and final part of the sequel trilogy – is currently in production. And with a lot of hype riding on it, its marketing is going to be executed very carefully – especially after last year’s prequel spin-off Solo: A Star Wars Story was let down by poor advertising. The first thing fans need to know is the title of the upcoming film.
There are three signs that we could be learning it very soon.
Firstly, just going by the timeline of previous movies, we shouldn’t have long to wait.
Episode 7: The Force Awakens had its title announced one year and one month prior to its release – and the far-in-advance timing was understandable given how the saga was essentially being revived at the time.
For Episode 8: The Last Jedi, that title came out on January 23, 2017; ahead of its cinematic release in December of that year.
Given that Episode 9 is also out in December, it seems a safe bet that it could follow a similar marketing trajectory – and have its title unveiled before the month is out.
Although it’s worth nothing that comparing Disney blockbusters to their predecessors doesn’t always work: remember how the Avengers: Endgame trailer came later than rumoured?
The second hint is the ongoing rumours that a trailer has been cut and is ready for release.
While the latest round of speculation says the promotional footage is more of a brief teaser than a full trailer, it’s still pretty much guaranteed that it will feature the title in it somewhere.
If those reports are accurate, it means Lucasfilm and Disney are preparing to properly kick off the marketing campaign for Episode 9, and a title shouldn’t be too far away.
The third and final clue is the Instagram activity of artist Eric Tan.
Tan is a creative artist who works with Disney, and has been uploading Star Wars posters to his account, one per day, starting with Episode I and working through the lot.
As he goes, he’s numbering them out of nine, suggesting he will upload one poster for all of the nine saga films.
He did Episode 7 yesterday, which means he should – at this rate – upload an Episode 9 art piece on Wednesday – tomorrow.
While it perhaps seems very ambitious to expect not only the title, but some kind of concept teaser poster at some point this week – and it’s surely hugely unlikely to happen THAT soon – it’s surely another sign that the wheels are well and truly in motion.
The countdown to Episode 9 is on…
Star Wars 9 is out in December 2019.
