Cameras on Star Wars: Episode VIII started rolling in mid-February, and now according to a Tumblr post from director Rian Johnson, the production is “in the home stretch.” He marked the occasion by releasing a set photo of what appears to be a Jedi robe, and these movies being what they are, it will trigger intense speculation on why he chose to photograph that robe in particular, who the robe belongs to (it looks like Luke’s but who knows for sure?), etc.

http://rcjohnso.tumblr.com/post/145623121700/in-the-home-stretch

Granted, we’re still hard up for information on Episode VIII. There are some who are clamoring just to know the title of the latest movie, but I’m fine living in ignorance about the facts for now. Keep in mind, we’ve still got another Star Wars movie coming to us before Episode VIII, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. That film has been creating rumors of production troubles, but we’ll have to wait and see if those rumors turn out to be a lot of noise our the signal of a truly troubled picture.

By comparison, word on Episode VIII has been mostly quiet, although that could be because unlike Rogue One, there hasn’t been anything to screen for the studio yet. It’s difficult making movies that are so heavily scrutinized, but it’s nice that Johnson has been willing to keep in touch with fans through these little posts. They don’t give anything away, but they keep the fires burning.

John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Oscar Isaac, and Adam Driver, Lupita Nyong’o (Maz Kanata), Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma), Dohmnall Gleeson (General Hux), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (General Leia), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), and Andy Serkis (Snoke) all return for Episode 8. They’ll be joined by Benicio Del Toro and Laura Dern. The film is scheduled for release on December 15, 2017.

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Image via Disney/Lucasfilm
star-wars-episode-8-set-photo
Image via Rian Johnson

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Image via Rian Johnson