'Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker' Gets A Different Title In Japan

Alternate international titles are nothing new for Hollywood movies. Sometimes translating a concept from English into another language doesn't quite work, and a bit of the subtlety is removed in the process. (In the Czech Republic, Bad Santa became Santa is a Pervert.) Maybe there's already a property that features the same title, so a tweak is needed to differentiate it. (In the United Kingdom, The Avengers is known as Avengers: Assemble.) And sometimes, the titles are just huge improvements in every possible way. (In Japan, Fast Five is known as Wild Speed MEGA MAX.)

Now Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has received its own alternate title in Japan, and it carries with it some familiar echoes from a different franchise altogether.

Rise vs. Dawn: sound familiar? Fox's Planet of the Apes franchise used both of those words in their titles of the prequel trilogy – although in an order that is baffling to many, including us. I'm honestly not sure if those two words can be used as essentially interchangeable in some non-English languages, but let's pretend for a second that the English title of this new movie was Dawn of Skywalker.

If anything, this title is more confusing in English because we've already seen the lives of both Anakin and Luke Skywalker play out in the previous six saga films, so wouldn't Dawn of Skywalker be a better title for Episode I? After all, that's the cinematic beginning of our understanding of that bloodline. "Dawn" means that at first there was nothing, and then suddenly, something appears. "Rise" implies that a thing has already existed, and then that thing ascends to a higher level.

Ultimately, I'm not entirely convinced that we can learn anything substantive about the film's content or its themes from this alternate title. Unless, of course, Dawn is referring to the dawning of a new religious order specifically known as the "Skywalker." That's been one of the prevailing theories since the English language title was first revealed, and the fact that this Japanese version could still seemingly be read as the title of a movie in which that theory bears out is sure to embolden those who have become set on seeing it come to life. But expectations can be a dangerous thing, so we're trying to keep ours in check until The Rise of Skywalker arrives in theaters stateside on December 20, 2019.