Should The Force Awakens Have A Post-Credits Scene?
By Josh Hill
It was revealed recently that The Force Awakens has a post-credit scene, but should a Star Wars movie copy the Marvel format?
We are just a few months away the release of Star Wars The Force Awakens, and already we’re starting to learn more and more about the movie. It’s not all plot points and character description we have been given either, as we learned about a post-credits sequence that will followup The Force Awakens, which seems to be the norm these days with giant tentpole films.
It’s frankly not that surprising that Disney is going to be tagging on a post-credits sequence to The Force Awakens, as that’s the model they follow with their Marvel movies. But the question is whether or not Star Wars needs to be the type of movie that has a post-credits scene tacked on to the backend of it, as it smacks of gimmickry and could backfire on loyal fans.
We’re talking about hardcores out there that have one above and beyond in hating George Lucas for changing the original trilogy films and slam him for even the smallest change to the point of conspiracy. But the tinfoil hat fringe of Star Wars fans will always find something to hate on, it’s the more mainline fans that could be put off by the idea of Star Wars subscribing to such a gimmick.
To put your initial fears to rest, the post-credits scene for The Force Awakens won’t be in the traditional stylings of the Marvel post-credit scene where it teases the next chapter of the franchise. Instead, it’s rumored that this will be a trailer or a first look at Rouge One, which by default isn’t a tease on the next chapter chronologically of the franchise but is technically a tease at the next chapter in the film release schedule.
Star Wars doesn’t need a Marvel-style scene after the film and it never will. As soon as that happens, we need to start worrying about the quality of the Star Wars films to come. But if this is just a teaser to Rouge One, it’s added incentive to see The Force Awakens in theaters — not that anyone is actively thinking about not doing that.
The fear here is that Disney will ease us into a method of Marvel-style scenes after the movie, and that’s a slippery slope to slide down.
Sure, it’s fine to see footage from the next movie to keep us interested, but this is Star Wars we’re talking about and there will always be interest in the films. You don’t need to dangle a carrot in front of Star Wars fans to get them to flock to the theaters to see a film.
Just look at how much hype The Force Awakens has gotten from the day that Lucas sold the franchise to Disney. There hasn’t been a Star Wars film in a decade and as soon as Lucas sold the rights to the film, the hype for Episode VII shot through the roof and to another galaxy.
We all want to see footage from the next Star Wars movie, and we all want to see our first look at the first anthology film which will exist outside of the traditional format we’ve grown accustom to over the last 40 years. Fans shouldn’t get too up in arms about the idea of this kind of a teaser, but at the same time it does come off as the type of thing that is more gimmick than anything else.