The Force Awakens Had Cameos You Probably Didn’t Notice
One of the criticisms that Star Wars: The Force Awakens has gotten was that it appeared to some to be too nostalgic, tying back a little to much to the six movies that preceded it. As Entertainment Weekly was told though, it might have been more than you realized.
Spoilers for The Force Awakens ahead! Stop now if you haven’t seen it!
In one of the key scenes, Rey touches Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber and has vision via the Force. In it, we get glimpses of both the past and the future of the Star Wars franchise. Some of which was not seen in Force Awakens per se. Also though, we heard voices that were all too familiar. An obvious one was Yoda, played by the original actor Frank Oz, who talked about the Force. This was pulled straight from Empire Strikes back.
However, there was a line that was add that featured two generations of the character. Obi-Wan Kenobi.
“The idea of the voices was, we wanted the audience to feel – but not necessarily be presented right in your face — this idea that familiar, Force-strong voices were connecting with her. At least as well as they could,” director J.J. Abrams explained. “You do hear a little bit of Yoda. You hear Luke yelling out, ‘Nooo!’ from that moment in Empire. And you hear Obi-Wan at the end say, ‘Rey… these are your first steps.””
He goes on to note that the line featured both Alec Guinness, who played Kenobi in the original trilogy, and Ewan McGregor, who played him in the prequels. They literally spliced together the line with both previous dialogue, and a new cut done by McGregor.
“They cut it, and you hear the performance – he’s saying it the way I would have begged Alec Guinness to have said it. It is so crazy perfect.”
The Force Awakens has been for many a true testament to what Star Wars is. A continuing story, and something many generations can appreciate, and a legacy they can pass on. It seems that scene was one of the ways that was shown.