LUCASFILM

Things Take a Dramatic Turn for Baby Yoda in The Mandalorian’s Penultimate Episode

After a few tangent episodes, The Mandalorian is back on target with its latest episode, which turns the focus back on The Child himself, Baby Yoda. Chapter seven of The Mandalorian season one is called “The Reckoning” which, if you’ve seen the episode, is kind of a spoiler, right? We knew to return to Navarro…

io9 Germain Lussier

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Is a Disappointing Way to End a Saga

If there’s something you always wanted to see in a Star Wars movie, but haven’t yet, odds are it’s in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. The film plays like a 150-minute checklist of cool stuff and surprises designed to please as many fans as possible. That may sound great, but in the process, that…

Movies Germain Lussier

13 Helpful Party Tips From the Star Wars Holiday Special

The Star Wars Holiday Special is legendarily bad, and it lives up to every part of that legend. Airing once in 1978 and never again, it’s a travesty that makes Jar Jar Binks seem both understated and dignified. But that’s not to say it’s entirely without benefit! In fact, it’s full of helpful tips for…

io9 Rob Bricken

The First (Spoiler-Free) Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Reactions Are Finally Here!

It’s almost here: The end of the Skywalker saga that began its stealthy takeover of pop culture all the way back in 1977, and has since changed both sci-fi and blockbuster movies forever. The Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker world premiere has just ended, and critics are sharing their (spoiler-free) reactions now! Here’s an initial…

Movies Cheryl Eddy

I Tried to Watch a New Star Wars Clip in Fortnite, and Now I’m More Confused About Fortnite Than Ever

Fortnite is one of the biggest pop cultural entities on the planet. Millions of people across the world spawn into Epic’s battle royale survival game, dance their emotes, build their walls, and shoot people until only one of 100 still stands, every day. This past Saturday, they—and I among them—watched a brand new clip from…

Movies James Whitbrook

This Battlefront II Trailer Is Basically the World’s Most Lavish Rise of Skywalker Fan Film

Nothing in this trailer plays out even remotely like an actual game of Battlefront II does. Nothing in this trailer plays out even remotely like anything in The Rise of Skywalker will. And yet—and yet—there’s nothing quite better to get you in the mood for a new Star Wars movie coming out this week than…

Trailers James Whitbrook

Wait, Did J.J. Abrams Really Just Tease an Ahsoka Tano Cameo in The Rise of Skywalker?

J.J? Please, don’t tease me on this. It’s important. In a recent interview with Japanese outlet Sora News, Abrams did the standard press junket interview, you know, promoting one of the biggest franchise films ever made and all that. Normal, routine stuff, until the interviewer asked Abrams who his favorite Star Wars character was. “Han…

Movies Julie Muncy

Victoria Mahoney, the First Woman to Direct a Star Wars Film, Explains How She Got the Job

Victoria Mahoney made Hollywood history when she became the second unit director on Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, making her so far the first (and only) woman to direct anything on a Star Wars movie, placing her alongside a handful of directors on The Mandalorian as the only women to direct Star Wars media…

Movies Julie Muncy

Even J.J. Abrams Can’t Get Disney to Release ‘Unspecial’ Versions of the Star Wars Movies

The white whale of any Star Wars fan—besides my dream Ahsoka Tano video game—is an unmodified release of the original Star Wars trilogy. Forget the special editions, forget the even-specialier editions. Many of us, from film buffs to preservationists to shameless, Prequel-hating nerds, want to see the films as they were originally presented in the…

Movies Julie Muncy

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Backlash Is Inevitable, According to Richard E. Grant

We’re now less than a week from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and two emotions seem to be dominating the conversation. Excitement, of course—we’re about to get a movie fans have waited years for. But also, fear. Fear of what will happen in the movie and how it may change the discourse. No matter…

Movies Germain Lussier

The Mandalorian Gave Us a Few New Stars to Gaze at This Week

If you watched this week’s episode of The Mandalorian and thought, “Wait, is that who I think it is?” Chances are, the answer is “Yes.” Chapter six of The Mandalorian season one is called “The Prisoner,” referring to Mando joining up with a ragtag group of bounty hunters to bust someone out of prison. That…

io9 Germain Lussier

Of Course There’s a 14-Month Waitlist for This $300 Unofficial Baby Yoda Toy

Etsy is currently teeming with unofficial merch for The Mandalorian’s “The Child,” or Baby Yoda, as he’s colloquially come to be known. But if you’re hoping to get your hands on this $300 lifelike replica before Christmas, think again. The handmade toy from Russia-based Etsy shop GakmanCreatures is one of a handful of Baby Yoda…

Toys & Collectibles Catie Keck

The Decade Disney Won

The control Disney has on pop culture right now is so enormous it’s kind of terrifying. Marvel’s superhero movies and Star Wars are two of—if not the—biggest franchises in the world. Add those to Pixar’s beloved library of films and its own perennially popular movies, and Disney is effectively in charge of an enormous percentage…

io9 Rob Bricken

Hasbro Reveals the Baby Yoda Toys You’re Looking For

Always more, we want. When the first Baby Yoda merch was revealed, everyone said it stunk. Then Funko and Disney released some stuff and we complained again. Now, finally, Hasbro is throwing its hat into the Baby Yoda ring and the results should have someone for everyone. Starting right now, most major retailers are taking…

Toys & Collectibles Germain Lussier

What’s Up With J.J. Abrams Seemingly Shading The Last Jedi?

The best thing about the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker being so close is that maybe, finally, we can stop talking about The Last Jedi. Or…not? Rian Johnson’s (in our opinion, excellent) eighth chapter in the Star Wars saga was always going to be divisive. That’s what middle chapters are. However, since…

Movies Germain Lussier

Rise of Skywalker’s Richard E. Grant on How Star Wars Secrecy Impacts an Actor’s Performance

Once you get past the lightsabers, TIE fighters, and general awe of being part of one of the biggest franchises in the world, acting in a Star Wars movie should be like any other acting job: Arrive on set, get in costume, and say your lines. But according to Richard E. Grant, that’s not exactly…

Movies Germain Lussier

The Star Wars Prequels’ Biggest Crime Was Wasting Christopher Lee

I wouldn’t call myself a Sir Christopher Lee fanboy, but I am an ardent admirer who often watches entertainment solely because he’s in it and buys merchandise because it bears his image or likeness. After all, he’s a pretty cool dude. He had a lengthy acting career in films both great and godawful, he was…

Movies Rob Bricken

Image: Paramount, Universal, Disney, Cartoon Network,Getty

The Pop Culture Highlights and Lowlights of 2019

It’s been a year seemingly full of bad news, bad takes, and bad feelings. But pop culture was still there for us—making us delight at unexpected joys like Baby Yoda, and allowing us to bond over horrors like Sonic the Hedgehog’s freakish teeth. Read on for io9’s pop culture highlights (and lowlights) of 2019. The…

io9 io9 Staff

Kathleen Kennedy on Why The Rise of Skywalker Revealed Two of Its Villainous Secrets in the Trailers

Interviewing someone like Kathleen Kennedy isn’t like interviewing an actor or director. As the president of Lucasfilm, she isn’t just involved in what we see on screen, she’s involved in everything happening in Star Wars—from the marketing and publicity to the merchandising, theme parks, and more. And while io9’s interview with Kennedy and fellow Rise…

Movies Germain Lussier

The Newest Star Wars Featurette Is About the Power of Friendship

Some heartwarming news: the cast members of the new Star Wars trilogy seems to really like each other. Which makes the newest Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker featurette a joy to watch. Titled “Friendship,” the new featurette, looking back at the behind-the-scenes history of the franchise, focuses on the intimacy and warmth that exists…

Movies Julie Muncy

Things Take a Dramatic Turn for Baby Yoda in The Mandalorian’s Penultimate Episode

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Is a Disappointing Way to End a Saga

13 Helpful Party Tips From the Star Wars Holiday Special

The First (Spoiler-Free) Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Reactions Are Finally Here!

I Tried to Watch a New Star Wars Clip in Fortnite, and Now I’m More Confused About Fortnite Than Ever

This Battlefront II Trailer Is Basically the World’s Most Lavish Rise of Skywalker Fan Film

Wait, Did J.J. Abrams Really Just Tease an Ahsoka Tano Cameo in The Rise of Skywalker?

Victoria Mahoney, the First Woman to Direct a Star Wars Film, Explains How She Got the Job

Even J.J. Abrams Can’t Get Disney to Release ‘Unspecial’ Versions of the Star Wars Movies

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Backlash Is Inevitable, According to Richard E. Grant

The Mandalorian Gave Us a Few New Stars to Gaze at This Week

Of Course There’s a 14-Month Waitlist for This $300 Unofficial Baby Yoda Toy

The Decade Disney Won

Hasbro Reveals the Baby Yoda Toys You’re Looking For

What’s Up With J.J. Abrams Seemingly Shading The Last Jedi?

Rise of Skywalker’s Richard E. Grant on How Star Wars Secrecy Impacts an Actor’s Performance

The Star Wars Prequels’ Biggest Crime Was Wasting Christopher Lee

The Pop Culture Highlights and Lowlights of 2019

Kathleen Kennedy on Why The Rise of Skywalker Revealed Two of Its Villainous Secrets in the Trailers

The Newest Star Wars Featurette Is About the Power of Friendship

National Film and Sound Archive of Australia Adds ‘Succulent Chinese Meal’ Guy

Feds Sniffing Around Polymarket After Suspicious Bets

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Don’t Get Too Attached to Any AI App

‘Paradise’ Writer Teases What’s Coming in Season 3 After That Huge Twist

Trump’s New White House App Is Mildly Concerning and Weird for a Lot of Reasons

Bloodsucking Ticks Can Survive Inside Your Home Longer Than You Might Think

The Best New Toys of March 2026

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

Asus ROG’s Cetra Open Wireless Gaming Earbuds Might Be Better Than Wearing a Headset

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