Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (also known as Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens) is a 2015 American space opera epic film co-produced, co-written, and directed by J. J. Abrams. The sequel to Return of the Jedi (1983), it is chronologically the seventh film of the "Skywalker Saga". Set thirty years after Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens follows Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron, and Han Solo's search for Luke Skywalker and their fight in the Resistance, led by General Leia Organa and veterans of the Rebel Alliance, against Kylo Ren and the First Order, a successor to the Galactic Empire. The film stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Max von Sydow.

Work on a seventh entry in the "Skywalker Saga" commenced after the Walt Disney Company's acquisition of Lucasfilm in 2012. The film is the first Star Wars film to not extensively involve franchise creator George Lucas, who only served as a creative consultant in the early stages of production. The Force Awakens was produced by Abrams, his longtime collaborator Bryan Burk, and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan, co-writer of the original trilogy films The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi, rewrote an initial script by Michael Arndt. John Williams, composer for the previous episodic films, returned to compose the score. Principal photography began in April 2014 and concluded the following November. Filming took place on sets at Pinewood Studios in England, and on location mainly in Abu Dhabi, Iceland, and Ireland. On a budget of $533 million, it is the most expensive film ever made.

The Force Awakens premiered in Hollywood, Los Angeles, on December 14, 2015, and was released in the United States on December 18. It was positively received by critics, who found it an action-packed film with the mix of new and familiar actors capturing the nostalgia of the original trilogy and giving the franchise new energy. The film grossed $2.07 billion worldwide, breaking various box office records and becoming the highest-grossing film in the United States and Canada, the highest-grossing film of 2015, and the third-highest-grossing film at the time of its release. It was nominated for five awards at the 88th Academy Awards and received numerous other accolades. The film was followed by The Last Jedi (2017) and The Rise of Skywalker (2019), rounding out the Star Wars sequel trilogy.

Thirty years after the Battle of Endor, the First Order has risen from the fallen Galactic Empire and seeks to end the New Republic. The Resistance, led by General Leia Organa, opposes the First Order. Leia searches for her twin brother, Luke Skywalker, who is missing.

On the desert planet Jakku, Resistance pilot Poe Dameron receives a map to Luke's location. First Order stormtroopers commanded by Kylo Ren arrive and capture Poe. His droid, BB-8, escapes with the map and encounters Rey, a lone scavenger. Kylo tortures Poe using the Force and learns of BB-8. Stormtrooper FN-2187, disillusioned with the First Order, saves Poe, and they escape in a stolen TIE fighter. Upon learning that FN-2187 has no other name, Poe names him "Finn". As they head to Jakku to retrieve BB-8, a First Order Star Destroyer shoots them, and they crash-land. Finn survives and assumes Poe was killed after finding his jacket in the wreck. Finn encounters Rey and BB-8, but the First Order tracks them and launches an airstrike. Rey, Finn, and BB-8 steal the Millennium Falcon and escape Jakku.

The Falcon is discovered and boarded by Han Solo and Chewbacca. Gangs seeking to settle debts with Han attack, but the group escapes in the Falcon. At the First Order's Starkiller Base, a planet converted into a superweapon, Supreme Leader Snoke approves General Hux's request to use the weapon on the New Republic. Snoke questions Kylo's ability to deal with emotions surrounding his father, Han Solo, whom Kylo states means nothing to him.

Aboard the Falcon, Han determines that BB-8's map is incomplete. He then explains that Luke attempted to rebuild the Jedi Order but exiled himself when an apprentice turned to the dark side, destroyed Luke's temple, and slaughtered the other apprentices. The crew travels to the planet Takodana and meets with cantina owner Maz Kanata, who offers help getting BB-8 to the Resistance. The Force draws Rey to a secluded vault, where she finds Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber. She experiences disturbing visions, including a childhood memory of a ship leaving her on Jakku. Rey denies the lightsaber at Maz's offering and flees into the woods. Maz gives Finn the lightsaber for safekeeping.

Starkiller Base destroys the Hosnian star system, including the New Republic capital: Hosnian Prime, leaving the Resistance without support. The First Order attacks Takodana in search of BB-8. Han, Chewbacca, and Finn are saved by Resistance X-wing fighters led by Poe, who survived the crash. Leia arrives at Takodana with C-3PO and reunites with Han. Meanwhile, Kylo captures Rey, realizing she had seen the map, and takes her to Starkiller Base, but she resists his mind-reading attempts. Snoke orders Kylo to bring Rey to him. Discovering she can use the Force, Rey escapes using a Jedi mind trick on a stormtrooper guard.

At the Resistance base, BB-8 finds R2-D2, who had been in low-power mode since Luke's disappearance. As Starkiller Base prepares to fire again, the Resistance plans to destroy it by attacking its thermal oscillator. Using the Falcon, Han, Chewbacca, and Finn infiltrate the facility, find Rey, and plant explosives. Han confronts Kylo, calling him by his birth name, Ben, and implores him to abandon the dark side. Kylo seems to consider this, but he ultimately kills Han. Chewbacca shoots Kylo, injuring him, and sets off the explosives, allowing Poe to attack and destroy the base's thermal oscillator.

Kylo pursues Rey and Finn into the woods and incapacitates Rey. Finn uses the lightsaber to duel Kylo but is quickly defeated. Rey awakens, takes the lightsaber, and defeats Kylo in a duel. Snoke orders Hux to evacuate and bring Kylo to him to complete his training. Chewbacca saves Rey and the injured Finn, and they escape aboard the Falcon. As the Resistance forces flee, Starkiller Base implodes and erupts into a star. R2-D2 awakens and reveals the rest of the map, which points to the oceanic planet Ahch-To.

Rey, Chewbacca, and R2-D2 travel to Ahch-To on the Falcon. Rey finds Luke atop a cliff on a remote island and presents him with his lightsaber.

Tim Rose and Mike Quinn reprise their respective roles as Admiral Ackbar and Nien Nunb from Return of the Jedi, with Erik Bauersfeld and Kipsang Rotich returning their respective voices. Kenny Baker, originally announced as part of the cast, was credited as "consultant" for R2-D2, with Jimmy Vee performing some of the work for R2-D2. Ewan McGregor has an uncredited vocal cameo as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Rey's vision sequence, while archival audio of Frank Oz and Alec Guinness as Yoda and Kenobi, respectively, are also used in the same scene; Oz recorded new dialogue for the film, but it was replaced with preexisting audio from The Empire Strikes Back. Star Wars: The Clone Wars voice actor James Arnold Taylor, who has voiced Obi-Wan Kenobi in different Star Wars media, originally recorded Kenobi's dialogue, but his recordings were replaced with McGregor's.

Gwendoline Christie portrays Captain Phasma, the commander of the First Order's legions of stormtroopers. Dave Chapman and Brian Herring served as puppeteers for BB-8, with Bill Hader and Ben Schwartz credited as "Vocal Consultants". Ken Leung appears as Statura, an admiral in the Resistance. Simon Pegg appears as Unkar Plutt, the Junk parts dealer on Jakku. Greg Grunberg plays Temmin "Snap" Wexley, an X-wing pilot. Kiran Shah plays Teedo, a scavenger on Jakku who rides a semi-mechanical Luggabeast. Jessica Henwick appears as Jess "Testor" Pava or Jess Testor, an X-wing pilot. Brian Vernel appears as Bala-Tik, the leader of the Guavian Death Gang. Yayan Ruhian and Iko Uwais appear as Tasu Leech and Razoo Qin-Fee, members of the Kanjiklub Gang, a criminal organization. Warwick Davis appears as Wollivan, a tavern-dweller in Maz Kanata's castle. Anna Brewster appears as Bazine Netal, a First Order spy, also at Maz Kanata's castle. Hannah John-Kamen appears as a First Order officer. Thomas Brodie-Sangster and Kate Fleetwood play First Order Petty Officers, Thanisson and Unamo, respectively. Billie Lourd, daughter of Carrie Fisher, appears as Connix, a lieutenant in the Resistance. Members of the Resistance include Emun Elliott as Brance and Maisie Richardson-Sellers as Korr Sella while Harriet Walter appears as Kalonia, the doctor who tends to Chewbacca. Mark Stanley appears as a Knight of Ren. Sebastian Armesto portrays Lieutenant Mitaka and Pip Torrens portrays Colonel Kaplan, both serving the First Order.

Daniel Craig, Michael Giacchino, and Nigel Godrich cameo as stormtroopers. Abrams' assistant, Morgan Dameron, appears as a Resistance officer, while his father, Gerald W. Abrams, appears as Captain Cypress. Dialect coach Andrew Jack portrays Resistance Major Caluan Ematt. Additionally, Crystal Clarke, Pip Andersen, Christina Chong, Miltos Yerolemou, Amybeth Hargreaves, Leanne Best, Judah Friedlander, and Kevin Smith appear in minor roles. Riot control stormtrooper FN-2199, who calls Finn a traitor during the battle on Takodana, was portrayed by stunt performer Liang Yang and voiced by sound editor David Acord.

Star Wars creator George Lucas discussed ideas for a sequel trilogy several times after the conclusion of the original trilogy, but denied any intent to make it. A seventh entry in the "Skywalker Saga", a nine-part Star Wars series, began development shortly after Lucas sold his production company Lucasfilm to the Walt Disney Company in October 2012. Speaking alongside Lucasfilm's new president, Kathleen Kennedy, Lucas said: "I always said I wasn't going to do any more and that's true, because I'm not going to do any more, but that doesn't mean I'm unwilling to turn it over to Kathy to do more."