Disney got the Star Wars music right on the final trailer for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. The Star Wars universe as fans have come to know it is coming to an end with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the final entry in the sequel trilogy and the closing chapter in the Skywalker saga, which began in 1977 with A New Hope. This final story is bringing together old and new characters from the saga for one last adventure, of which very little is known.
In typical Disney/Star Wars fashion, plot details on The Rise of Skywalker have been kept under wraps, which hasn’t really pleased many fans. What is known is that it’s set a year after the events of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and that what’s left of the Resistance will face the First Order again. Although the sequel trilogy’s main focus are new characters, mainly Rey and Kylo Ren, it has obviously taken many elements from the original one, among those the music – although Disney hasn’t exactly used the theme they were supposed to, until now.
The Star Wars universe has many music themes thanks to composer John Williams, among those the “Star Wars Theme”, “The Imperial March”, and “The Force Theme”, but surprisingly (or maybe not so much to some), Disney hasn’t used the main theme in the trailers for the sequel trilogy. Most recently, the teasers and trailers for The Rise of Skywalker have featured the Force theme – or “Binary Sunset” – and it wasn’t until the final Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker trailer that the main Star Wars theme was used, albeit a slower version of it. Although “The Force Theme” is a recurrent motif in the Star Wars saga, it feels odd that Disney decided to use it instead of the main theme, which has a bigger impact.
“The Force Theme” was originally intended by John Williams to be Ben Kenobi’s theme, and is also considered by some as “Luke’s Theme” as it was used in A New Hope when Luke is looking at the sunset. The theme was introduced in the scene where Princess Leia gives R2D2 the Death Star plans, and plays a couple more times through the film. “The Force Theme” has appeared in all Star Wars films to date (including a different version in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and it was absent from Solo: A Star Wars Story) in different scenes, accompanying different characters.
The “Star Wars Theme”, on the other hand, is the first tune to come to mind when thinking of the music of Star Wars, which only makes Disney’s move all the more weird. Whatever the studio’s reason to not use it, it’s quite symbolic that it was finally added to the final trailer of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, as it’s the film that will bring closure to an era of Star Wars films, and it’s the final trailer from the Skywalker saga – unless they decide to drop one final surprise.
Next: Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker Trailer Breakdown
- Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker Release Date: 2019-12-20