D23 Expo ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ Panel Character Details & More

D23 Expo 2019 is happening right now, and there are some details on The Rise of Skywalker that have come out. Check out Brandon Davis’ live recap on comicbook.com for more.

Most of the cast was at the Disney expo this weekend, along with director JJ Abrams and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. There was some slight details released about Zorri, Kerri Russell’s character. Apparently she’s an old friend of Poes. The implied tone of this at the panel suggests an old romantic flame so it’ll be interesting to see what happens between the two. Is Zorri an ally? Or does she hold her past with Poe against the Resistance?

JJ Abrams talked about having Leia back to finish off the Skywalker Saga. He and Kennedy also released a new poster.

“Of course, we can’t talk about the cast without talking about Carrie Fisher. The character of Leia is really the heart of this story. We realized we could not possibly tell this story without Leia. We had footage from Episode VII so that we could use in a new way. So, we were able to use Carrie in a new way…we started talking about this movie and I was not supposed to be here. We lost Carrie, heartbreakingly, she passed.

I was working on this film and I realized we needed Carrie in this film…She was sort of like always supernaturally witty in a way. I went back and I looked at her last book, the Princess Diarest, she had written and special thanks to JJ Abrams for putting up with me twice. Now, I had never worked with her before Force Awakens and I had not signed up for this yet. Now, it was a classic Carrie thing, to do something like that and we could not be more excited for you to see her in her final performance as Leia. “

Check out the new poster for Star Wars: #TheRiseOfSkywalker that debuted at #D23Expo. See the film in theaters December 20. pic.twitter.com/FUSZaGQZE6

— Star Wars (@starwars) August 24, 2019

As well as releasing the new poster, Lucasfilm also released a sizzle reel for the full Skywalker Saga. The reel highlighted footage from all of the Skywalker Saga films, including The Rise of Skywalker. This footage was not released publicly, though Entertainment Weekly believes it will be released on Monday. Here’s the footage description from Brandon Davis.

A special look back at Star Wars plays to conclude the presentation. It includes all of the previous films. “We’ve passed on all we know. The thousand generations live in you now but this is your fight.” It culminates with footage from the new movie. The group overlooks a small village. An army of ships in spaces. Rey cuts through trees. Kylo emerges from a ship. Rey and Kylo fight surrounded by water. Palpatine narrates — it nears its end” Rey is wearing a black robe — her red lightsaber splits in two, dual wielding like Darth Maul.

What do you think of these new details for Star Wars IX? Why do you think Rey is carrying a red lightsaber? Let us know in the comments below!

The Rise of Skywalker will premiere December 20, 2019.

The film stars Kerri Russell, Oscar Issac, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Naomi Ackle, Richard E. Scott, and Kelly Marie Tran. It’s directed by JJ Abrams.