Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker to Introduce New Force Powers That Director Claims Might "Infuriate" Fans

Keeping in tradition with its predecessors, the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will [...]

Keeping in tradition with its predecessors, the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will come with new manifestations of what characters can accomplish through the use of the Force, though director J.J. Abrams admits that some of these new abilities could "infuriate" fans. The film and the powers depicted won't entirely be paving a new path, as the director also promised an embrace of the spirit of the original films, yet he didn't merely want to offer audiences the same tricks that they've come to expect over the years. Given the passionate reactions from fans to the sequel trilogy, Abrams seems well aware of how bold decisions can be received.

"It was really important that we not just redo the things you've seen, but add new elements—which we knew will infuriate some people and thrill others," Abrams revealed to Vanity Fair. "Among those things are not just new ways of doing sort of traditional, must-have sequences, whether it's chases or lightsaber battles, or what have you."

He added, "We wanted to make sure that this picture also showed aspects of the Force in ways that go beyond what you've seen before."

In Star Wars: A New Hope, audiences saw that the Force could be used to influence the thoughts of others, serve as a sense of precognition, and even allow Darth Vader to choke someone from across the room. In Star Wars: The Last Jedi, fans saw the Force used in similar ways, in addition to the heightening of physical abilities of those attuned to its ways and the power to connect Kylo Ren and Rey across the galaxy with the intimacy of being in the same room as one another.

In other corners of the franchise, such as Star Wars Rebels, fans saw the mythology of the Force expand in exciting new ways, such as the introduction of the "World Between Worlds" and how it allowed Ezra Bridger to travel to different points in time of the galaxy. Reports about the upcoming film have hinted that we could see an extension of this concept, potentially allowing Kylo Ren and Rey to battle across space and time.

These latest comments elaborate on remarks Abrams and star Daisy Ridley hinted at earlier this year at Star Wars Celebration.

When panel host Stephen Colbert asked Daisy Ridley if we would see new Force abilities, the actress then deflected the answer to Abrams, causing the director to joke, "I used to love Daisy. I thought she was awesome."

Abrams continued, "I'll say this, there are some extraordinary things that the character, and Daisy did, but I will say some of the stuff that was possible was [thanks to] the stunt coordinator...who was just amazing."

Fans will see all the Force abilities the film will offer when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker lands in theaters on December 20th.

What kind of Force powers do you think we'll see? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

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