Entertainment Weekly continues their “The Force Awakens” coverage today with an article focusing on The First Order, mainly in regards to General Hux and Starkiller Base.
In the article, J.J. confirms what we all speculated on, which was that the planet we see in the poster is indeed Starkiller Base, and that it’s pretty much another Deathstar.
Here’s how J.J. described Starkiller Base in the article posted on EW.com, as well as Domhnall Gleeson talking about the ruthlessness of General Hux, and his relationship with Kylo Ren:
“It is very much — and it’s acknowledged as such in the movie — apparently another Death Star,” Abrams says. “But what it’s capable of, how it works, and what the threat is, is far greater than what the Death Star could have done. Starkiller Base is another step forward, technologically speaking, in terms of power.”
Abrams says it’s only logical that this new generation of Imperial wannabes would consider the failure of their idols to be a lack of ambition. If they’re going to succeed where Darth Vader and the Emperor failed, they’re going to have to demonstrate that they are even more menacing and destructive.
“Evil’s a little bit like a drug,” Abrams says. “It takes more and more of it to have the same effect. And I think the First Order is a really deadly drug.”
Domhnall Gleeson says this commander of the First Order is defined by arrogance and contempt. “There’s an air of superiority, and being better than those people around you,” he says. “He’s pretty ruthless. A strong disciplinarian would be a mild way of putting it.”
“You don’t get that high up in your life that quickly unless you’re pretty ruthless,” says Gleeson, who’s 32. “You have to put a few people down on the way to get there.” The actor also says Hux doesn’t carry a signature weapon: he has other people to do such dirty work.
What’s the appeal of the First Order to Hux? “It’s in the title: order,” Gleeson says. “It’s a desire to lump everything in its place and just have power. The desire for power is hugely motivating for a lot of people and normally the people who want all the power are not the ones who should have it.”
“He’s kind of opposite Kylo Ren,” Gleeson says. “They have their own relationship, which is individual and unusual. One of them is strong in different ways than the other. They’re both vying for power.”
While I know some fans were worried that Starkiller Base was just going to another Deathstar, I think J.J. perfectly described on why it makes sense for The First Order to construct another super weapon, and learn from the mistakes of the Empire to make it even more powerful. I also liked that they will acknowledge it as another Deathstar in the movie. I’m also now looking forward to seeing General Hux and Kylo Ren interact with each other on screen, now knowing that they’re probably not going to be getting along too well in the movie!
Be sure to check out the full article over at EW.com, where they speculate on just what Starkiller Base can actually do.
About the author
