Star Wars Bits: Fox Wasn't Happy When Disney Bought Lucasfilm, Han Solo In Carbonite Roaster & More

In this edition of Star Wars Bits:

First up, J.J. Abrams confirmed a fan theory about Kylo Ren's repaired helmet in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. As we've seen, the helmet is pieced back together by some kind of red bonding material after Kylo Ren smashed it in anger in The Last Jedi. Fans have said the helmet now represents his fractured place in this story, trying to stay in the dark while the light still pulls at him. Abrams said this decision was very much intentional, and it takes a cue from history (via Empire):

"Having [Kylo Ren] be masked, but also fractured, is a very intentional thing. Like that classic Japanese process of taking ceramics and repairing them, and how the breaks, in a way, define the beauty of the piece as much as the original itself. As fractured as Ren is, the mask becomes a visual representation of that. There's something about this that tells his history. His mask doesn't ultimately hide him and his behavior is revealed."

Does that mean there's still hope for the redemption of Ben Solo?

One character who doesn't need much redemption, since she's already the heroine who stole our hearts, is Rey. Ever since we saw her scavenging in her first moments of The Force Awakens, we've loved this woman. And now one of the most adorable moments featuring the character is becoming a statue.

As you can see above, Gentle Giant Ltd. has created a new statue of Rey as she looks to the skies, pondering the galaxy around her while she's stuck waiting for her family to return for her on Jakku. The above photo is actually of the Premier Guild member exclusive version, which you have to sign up for in order to buy. But there's a regular version without Rey wearing the helmet that still looks lovely, even if it's not quite as cute.

Though 20th Century Fox now falls under the banner of The Walt Disney Company, the two were previously at odds with each other. Not only were they competing studios, each with Marvel properties of their own, not to mention sharing Star Wars history between them, but when Disney bought Lucasfilm awhile back, Fox was not happy about it.

In his new book, The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company, the House of Mouse executive remembered that Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of News Corps., which formerly owned 20th Century Fox, was not happy with the acquisition of Lucasfilm. Iger recalled:

"Rupert was crazed that we bought Lucas. They were the distributor of all of George's movies, and he was very disappointed in his people. 'Why didn't you think of this?'"

Maybe now that Disney owns Fox, we can finally get the theatrical cuts of the original Star Wars trilogy on Blu-ray.

While most the excitement for Triple Force Friday is focused on Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and The Mandalorian, let's not forget that Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order has some new merchandise out there too. And with the game itself arriving next month, the Star Wars databank has been updated with details about the game's new characters, creatures, locations and much more. Find out the latest updates to the databank from the game over here.

Speaking of video games, the Star Wars VR series Vader Immortal recently dropped Episode II on everyone by surprise, and with it came the revelation of the identity of the Black Bishop. Since this is something you may not want to know until you get a chance to play the VR experience yourself, we'll let the video from Star Wars Explained do the heavy lifting if you want to know more about this character.

First up in our announcements is for all Star Wars™ fans! From Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker come ARTFX renditions of D-O™ & BB-8™ and Rey™! Kylo Ren™ also joins our ARTFX+ series! Pre-orders will open 10/4, so keep your eyes peeled!#StarWars #ForceFriday #Kotobukiya pic.twitter.com/6z0azIgOGf

— Kotobukiya Official (@Kotobukiya_EN) September 27, 2019

Since today is Triple Force Friday, here's a glimpse at some higher-priced merchandise inspired by The Rise of Skywalker. These are three upcoming ARTFX statues from Kotobukiya featuring Rey, Kylo Ren and the droid pals BB-8 and D-O. Pre-orders for these statues are up now.

However, even though there's plenty of Star Wars merchandise on the shelves for Triple Force Friday, it's not nearly as much as will eventually be available once the movie gets released. In fact, CinemaBlend spoke with Hasbro's Senior Director of Global Marketing, Mike Ballog, who said that Triple Force Friday will only have about a third of the total products they have planned, and that's all to avoid spoilers. Ballog said:

"We have clear conversations about what can come out when, and what needs to stay under wraps. We work around things with that in mind. At least from a Hasbro stand point, [the product on display is] maybe 30-35% of our full line."

That's become customary for Star Wars toy releases, and unfortunately, it means a lot of cool stuff doesn't get released until much later. But we'll be as patient as we can.

Toys aren't the only thing leading us into The Rise of Skywalker. Marvel Comics also has a whole story arc taking us into the final chapter of the Skywalker saga, and a sneak preview teases what's in store for the series. Above is the opening crawl from the comic, but you can see more pages at panels over at StarWars.com right here. Here's the official synopsis for Journey to Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker — Allegiance #1 (of 4):

Before the exciting events of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker! Hounded by the First Order across the galaxy, the Resistance is in dire need of ships, weapons and recruits to make a final stand against Kylo Ren's forces. Desperation drives a delegation led by General Leia Organa and Rey to entreat the Rebel veteran's one-time allies, the Mon Calamari, to join the fight — but decades after Imperial occupation enslaved their planet, there are those willing to stop at nothing to prevent another war from bloodying the waters of Mon Cala. A system away, Poe Dameron and Finn have their own mission: to hunt down a weapons cache on the remote moon of Avedot, unaware that they are being hunted by the most notorious criminal gang in the galaxy.

If you're a Star Wars fan who loves to cook and and you've got money to burn, then you might want to spend some cash on the new Star Wars Le Creuset Collection of cookware. It includes incredible pieces inspired by the most iconic characters from Star Wars, including a $450 roaster with a lid that looks like it has Han Solo in Carbonite. Sign up here to be the first to know when these limited-edition pieces go live.