Wisconsin High School Evacuated After Student Cosplays As Darth Vader

Nerds across the world celebrated this past Thursday, May 4th, as the unofficial Star Wars Day. Dubbed “May the Fourth Be With You“, the day allows creators and fans alike to share their love for the popular sci-fi franchise. But, at one Wisconsin high school, that celebration had some surprising effects.

Ashwaubenon High School, located within a suburb of Green Bay, was placed on lockdown and evacuated on Thursday morning after a student arrived on campus in a Darth Vader cosplay. A nearby middle school and community center was placed on lockdown as well.

According to the local authorities, the student’s cosplay was perceived as a possible threat after a parent mistook it for body armor.

“The student was wearing a Darth Vader outfit with a plastic mask and was carrying a bag with him,” a police officer explained at the scene. “And that outfit looked like he might be wearing a bulletproof vest or a flak jacket. That, with wearing that mask and walking into the back door of the school, made a person very concerned. And we expect that to happen. We sure hope that people would call when this stuff takes place.”

While the officer reassured that the situation ultimately was “an innocent mistake”, reports are saying that the student will be held accountable for violating the school’s no-costume policy.

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Star Wars: The Last Jedi, from writer/director Rian Johnson, is in post-production now for a December 15, 2017, release. The film follows-up and continues the story of the next generation of the saga as Rey, Poe, Finn, and Kylo Ren find their place in the galaxy and follow the legacy of Luke Skywalker, Leia, and Han Solo. Daisy Ridley returns to star as Rey, with other returning stars John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Domhnall Gleeson, Gwendoline Christie, Peter Mayhew, Andy Serkis, Anthony Daniels, Lupita Nyong’o Mark Hamill, and Carrie Fisher as General Leia Organa. Benicio Del Toro and Laura Dern join the cast in as-yet-unrevealed roles.