Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Attempts to Give an Ending to All 9 Films According to J.J. Abrams

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is finally hitting theaters at the end of the year, and will serve as the final chapter in the long and beloved Skywalker Saga. The movie is expected to complete the story that George Lucas began back in 1977, and according to the new film’s director, J.J. Abrams, fans can expect some satisfying closure to all nine films in the saga. Abrams recently interviewed with Entertainment Weekly, where he talked about ending the story and how concluding such an epic tale can be scary.

“Endings are the thing that scare me the most,” Abrams admitted. “This is about bringing this thing to a close in a way that is emotional and meaningful and also satisfying in terms of actually answering [as many] questions as possible,” he explained. “So if years from now, someone’s watching these movies, all nine of them, they’re watching a story that is as cohesive as possible.”

As for concluding the story, Abrams revealed during D23 Expo that the final shot the film was decided early on.

“If I had not decided on that, I’d be in real trouble,” Abrams joked. “But, it was a very early on thing, and it’s less the last shot of the movie than the last sequence, but it’s something that I… hope you like.”

During the Episode IX panel at Star Wars Celebration earlier this year, Abrams teased what fans can expect from the upcoming movie.

“The movie doesn’t pick up immediately after the last film,” he shared. “Some time has passed. This movie is an adventure the group goes on together. One of the great things about getting to work on the movie is the dynamic between all of the characters. They’re amazing together, and it’s something I’m excited for you all to see.”

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is set to star a returning Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, and Billie Lourd. New cast members include Naomi Ackie, Richard E. Grant, and Keri Russell, and the returning veteran actors are Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Billy Dee Williams, and Ian McDiarmid as the Emperor. According to Abrams, Leia will be featured in the film using unreleased footage of Carrie Fisher from Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is expected to hit theatres on December 20th.