Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Premiere Got a Standing Ovation

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker held its Hollywood premiere last night and received a standing ovation. The film is the last installment of the Star Wars sequel trilogy. It also brings the Skywalker saga to its end. Appreciation for the entire saga led to rounds of applause throughout the screening. In an earlier interview, director JJ Abrams -- who previously directed 2015's Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- discussed the challenges of ending such an epic saga. "Endings are the thing that scare me the most," Abrams said. "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. 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."

Abrams chose to bring back Emperor Palpatine, the villain of the original trilogy, to help tie the entire saga together. "Some people feel like we shouldn't revisit the idea of Palpatine, and I completely understand that," Abrams says in an interview with Empire Magazine. "But if you're looking at the nine films as one story, I don't know many books where the last few chapters have nothing to do with those that have come before. If you look at the first eight films, all the set-ups of what we're in IX are there in plain view."

In Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the surviving Resistance faces the First Order once more as Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron's journey continues. With the power and knowledge of generations behind them, the final battle commences.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker stars Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong'o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran, Joonas Suotamo, Billie Lourd, Naomi Ackie, Richard E. Grant, Keri Russell, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Billy Dee Williams, and Carrie Fisher.

Are you excited about the end of the Skywalker saga in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker? Let us know how you feel about it in the comments section. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker opens in theaters on December 20th.

Star Wars is also headed to the Disney+ streaming service. The Mandalorian is now streaming on DIsney+. A show following Obi-Wan Kenobi is in the works, with Ewan MacGregor returning to the role. A series about Rogue One's Cassian Andor is also in development.