Check out this TV-event of Mark Hamill on ESPN that will air on ESPN in lead-up to The Force Awakens. This will definitely be a program to watch.
Mark Hamill to Host ESPN Star Wars Special Connecting Sports and Lightsaber Duels
A few days before the premiere of one of the most anticipated movies of the decade, ESPN’s SC Featured will connect the world of sports with the world of Star Wars in a half-hour special.
Examining the sport and athleticism behind the choreography and training utilized in the making of Star Warslightsaber duels, Star Wars: Evolution of the Lightsaber Duel, hosted by Mark Hamill, will air Tuesday, Dec. 15, at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN. The documentary will precede the Friday, Dec. 18, launch of Star Wars: The Force Awakens in U.S. theaters.
“Lightsaber duels from the Star Wars films are some of cinema’s most recognized battles and an iconic part of the most popular movie franchise of all time,” said Craig Lazarus, ESPN vice president, SportsCenter & News, Storytelling Units.
“We will take viewers on a unique journey that examines the connection of these duels to sports and their evolution, from the original trilogy through the prequels, and now to Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” said Lazarus. “Viewers will see the transition from fencing and samurai swordplay in the original films to an increased focus on martial arts and the sport of kendo.”
For the documentary, ESPN traveled to the 2015 Kendo World Championships in Japan to gather interviews and information to explain the genesis of kendo and how it applies to Star Wars lightsaber duels
Hamill, who reprises his role of Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, lived in Japan for his last two years of high school and is very familiar with kendo.
“I really feel that kendo has informed so much of what we have done in the films it is about time that it gets some long-overdue recognition,” Hamill said.
“What people don’t realize is how much goes into what appears to be just minutes on the screen,” Hamill said. “The elaborate choreography for the actual fight is done on several different sets over a period of weeks and then it is edited down to what you see on the screens, so I am happy people are able to see the amount of work that goes into it.”
The program also will include behind-the-scenes video of actor John Boyega, who plays Finn in the new film, as he trains for a lightsaber battle scene. Boyega is interviewed for the program as is his kendo trainer, Paul Vincent.
SC Featured also traveled to England to interview actor Ian McDiarmid, who portrayed Emperor Palpatine in previousStar Wars films and Nick Gillard, kendo expert and former Star Wars stunt man and choreographer.
New interviews with film director/producer J.J. Abrams and Jonathan W. Rinzler, Lucasfilm historian, are also part of the documentary along with rare, behind-the-scenes footage from the Lucasfilm archive.
On Oct. 19, the trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakensdebuted during halftime of ESPN’s Monday Night Footballgame between the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles, with tickets for the movie going on sale immediately afterward.
ABOUT THE MOVIE:
Lucasfilm and visionary director J.J. Abrams join forces to take you back again to a galaxy far, far away as Star Warsreturns to the big screen with Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
The film stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew and Max Von Sydow. Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams and Bryan Burk are producing with Tommy Harper and Jason McGatlin serving as executive producers. The screenplay is by Lawrence Kasdan & J.J. Abrams and Michael Arndt.
Author: Len Cline
Len Cline has been a fan of Star Wars since he saw a pirated “A New Hope” with a TV dinner when he was around 3 (He only remembers the Tantive 4 battle), he was in his “Primary Star Wars Introduction Age” (PSWIA for short) (aka. 7 years) when “Revenge of the Sith” came out. Len fell out of the active Star Wars fandom for a few years and explored the majority of science fiction eras (except for the 90’s , which is a big deal (Except for Star Trek) until he was brought back through the Star Wars podcasting community. Len loves to read science fiction (Asimov being his favourite writer) and also enjoys the classics (Dostoyevsky anyone?). He loves all things philosophy (Cogito ergo sum!), politics (De Toqueville and Machiavelli!), and poetry (Mathew Arnold and T.S. Eliot for the win!). He is also an anglophile. Len’s worldview is colored by many things in his life: He’s a devout Catholic and holds his beliefs high, as well as believing that morality and personal responsibility are paramount. Len hopes to move to Europe to attend college for philosophy and/or other social sciences. He then aims to put his studies to good use for the world (hopefully just like Luke Skywalker!).