'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' & 'Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle' set to dominate Christmas Weekend

For the first time since 2006, Christmas Day will land on a Monday this year. As such, this weekend's forecast below represents how films are tracking for the four-day weekend.

Mark Hamill force chokes 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' by saying the prequels weren't "trying to do the same" thing "over again"

As Luke Skywalker, if anyone has a right to say things about the 'Star Wars' franchise, it is Mark Hamill. He's recently made some remarks that might stir up fans by calling the prequel trilogy as being more creative than 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens. ' Before anyone who couldn't stand those Jar Jar Binks infested movies stands up in uproar, you should hear his reasoning why before throwing your opinion down. I mean, he could just wave his hand and tell you that these aren't the movies that you are looking for. We should at least hear Hamill out first.

This took place in a recent interview with the actor where he was talking about the franchise and shared his thoughts on 'Phantom Menace', 'Attack of the Clones', and 'Revenge of the Sith'.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi - This is the real reason why there are porgs

The inspiration for the squeaking, wide-eyed little creatures on Luke Skywalker's solitary island in the latest Stars Wars film have been revealed as puffins.

The team doing the Last Jedi special effects said it was easier to turn the seabirds native to Skellig Michael, off the south-west coast of Ireland, into a new "indigenous species" rather than digitally remove them.

Science fiction when the future is now

Six authors parse the implications of our unhinged era for their craft.

AlphaGo, fake news, cyberwar: 2017 has felt science-fictional in the here and now. Space settlement and sea-steading seem just around the bend; so, at times, do nuclear war and pandemic. With technological change cranked up to warp speed and day-to-day life smacking of dystopia, where does science fiction go? Has mainstream fiction taken up the baton?

The 5 best sci-fi movies of 2017

By Dirk Libbey

Science fiction is always a popular genre at the movies as it brings worlds and creatures that we can otherwise only imagine to life. It's about living in the future or traveling through space. It shows us technology that may never exist. At it's best, it uses this distance from reality to show us something truly real. It's the perfect genre for those that use the cinema as a place to escape reality, while still thinking critically about the world around us.

Some of the best movies of the year were science fiction films, so this list isn't just the best of the genre, but also some of the best films you could have seen this year. Here are the best sci-fi films of 2017.

The difference between science fiction and fantasy: what every screenwriter needs to know

By: Script Magazine

We all know him: Kal-El, the last son of Krypton. He's faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive and is able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Known as "the man of steel," Superman emulates truth, justice and the American way. Most of us love, or at least like him. Given the choice of superpowers to pick from, I imagine most of us would choose his. But to the writer, and more specifically, the screenwriter, what is Superman?

Michelle Williams' 'Venom' role has been confirmed

Michelle Williams was announced as having joined the cast of Sony's 'Venom' back in September, but because the film was so early into development, it wasn't specified which character she would play, although there were rumors that she would play Eddie Brock's (Tom Hardy) ex-wife Anne Weying. Now it can be confirmed that this is indeed Williams' role.

Ruben Fleischer ('Gangster Squad', 'Zombieland') is directing the film, which also stars Riz Ahmed and Jenny Slate, with Woody Harrelson's name recently attached, although unconfirmed. The story will draw from the comic book stories 'Lethal Protector'and 'Planet of the Symbiotes'. Spider-Man (Tom Holland) will not appear. Beyond that, not much else is known.

From Mcquarrie to Chiang: highlights from 40 years of Lucasfilms Star Wars holiday cards

In December 1977, after Star Wars had spent six months taking audiences to a brand-new galaxy far, far away, Lucasfilm began a holiday tradition of sending cards to friends and corporate partners that still continues today. The very first Lucasfilm holiday card, which was an unassuming, Hollywood-themed greeting card, was probably sent to a few hundred recipients in 1977 and then subsequently relegated to the backs of file cabinet drawers - or worse - after the holiday season.

Ronald D. Moore's new show is boldly going where no sci-fi show has gone before! Apple TV?!

Ronald D. Moore got his start in science fiction with 'Star Trek: The Next Generation' and made his name with 'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine' and the still amazing (despite that ending) 'Battlestar Galactica' and is now breaking new ground with Apple TV!

Well we hope you enjoyed this issue of StarWarrior. Let us know what you think, we'd love to hear from you! Send in your Cosplay photos and a brief bio and you too could feature in StarWarrior!

Thomas Austen
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Take a Luke...

By Rosie Gizauskas

Star Wars fans are one step closer to actually flying the Millennium Falcon. Disney have now released the first photo of the brand new attraction - and fans are going weak at the knees. With Disney's new Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge theme parks due to open in 2019 in California and Florida, fans have been eagerly awaiting glimpses from the actual park - and now they have one.

Artificially intelligent robots could soon gain consciousness and rebel against humans to 'ELIMINATE us', scientist warns

From babysitting children to beating the world champion at Go, robots are slowly but surely developing more and more advanced capabilities.
And many scientists, including Professor Stephen Hawking, suggest it may only be a matter of time before machines gain consciousness.

'Maayavan' review: Science fiction or science lesson?

Maayavan's basic premise is great. But its execution on screen quite isn't.

Maayavan opens with Ilaiyaraaja's soothing 'Keladi Kanmani' number playing on what looks like a radio. But the listener isn't someone sitting in a tea shop in Thanjavur; he is lying in what looks like a futuristic hospital bed. The year, we're informed, is 2037.

2017 celebrity deaths: Science fiction and the world lost iconic talents

Looking back on 2017, it's impossible to forget the entertainment icons who were taken too soon. We lost a Batman and a James Bond in Adam West and Roger Moore, directors such as Jonathan Demme and George Romero, and actors with distinguished careers like Sam Shepard -- a Renaissance man of the arts. But one particular universe feels emptier as we look ahead to 2018: science fiction films.

Throwback Review: 'Solaris' (1972)

By Tony Schaab

Mention the words "science fiction," and many minds automatically picture large ships gliding through space, shooting lasers at one another, or bizarre and fascinating alien life making contact for the first time (or invading the Earth).

Deadpool Is already making trouble for Disney

By Emily Schaab

A certain anti-superhero isn't too happy about the Disney Fox merger. Leave it to Deadpool to rain on the Disney's parade!

The Merc with a mouth didn't waste any time making an impression on his new bosses, although it wasn't exactly a great one. Ryan Reynolds shared a photo of that first impression, and it seems Deadpool managed to get himself arrested at Disney World. The image shows a security guard ushering Deadpool out of the magical Disney kingdom with the caption "Apparently you can't actually blow the Matterhorn."

Are we all aliens? Scientists create life's building blocks in a space-like environment suggesting we were created from interstellar dust

Life may have begun in the frigid vacuum of space, according to experts who found small organic molecules can form under these conditions.
Scientists were able to prompt chemical reactions that resulted in the creation of the building blocks for early organisms in a simulated solar system.
Rather than starting here on Earth, the finding suggests that the compounds needed for proteins and carbohydrates to develop may be extra terrestrial in origin.

'Jaw-dropping, gripping, unpredictable, insane': Twitter reacts to Star Wars: The Last Jedi as it's billed 'best movie since Empire'

The Force is strong with this one.

The first reviews are in for Star Wars: The Last Jedi - and everybody is blown away. The world premiere of the eighth chapter in the Skywalker saga, directed by Rian Johnson, took place in Hollywood on Saturday night.

'Star Wars' box office: 'Last Jedi' has a key advantage over 'Force Awakens'

Well, this is interesting. Morning Consult, a privately-held technology and media company specializing in online survey and market research, just dropped a bunch of poll results around the Star Wars movies. You can read the results on their actual page, but I wanted to point out one very interesting nugget. To the extent that the 2,200 adults polled in the survey represent a national consensus, Princess Leia is the most popular character, followed by Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, Yoda, RD-D2 and only then Han Solo.

14 things we learned about 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi'

The cast and creators of Star Wars: The Last Jedi had a whole lot to say in our new cover story - from writer/director Rian Johnson's revelation that he considered making Luke Skywalker blind to Adam Driver's confession of total emo ignorance to Daisy Ridley's declaration that she was done with the saga after the next movie (she's since attempted to walk that one back). But our in-depth interviews for the article yielded even more revelations that didn't quite fit. Here's what we learned.

Knights of the Old Republic won't be Rian Johnson's new Star Wars Trilogy

While Johnson himself is a huge fan of the two Knights of the Old Republic games and understands that fans of the series would love to see it adapted for the big screen, the director recently told Mashable he doesn't believe their story would really be compelling enough to warrant a trilogy. Like many filmmakers presented with the chance to grab ahold of a franchise like Star Wars, Johnson's far more interested in doing his own thing.

Millennial moviegoers most excited for 'Star Wars,' 'Jumanji'

The movie business has long been worried that it suffers from an aging customer base, with younger viewers abandoning multiplexes for the pleasures and convenience of Netflix or video games.

This free science fiction anthology is all about the future of space exploration

There's been a growing movement within the science fiction community to imagine the future as something other than a dreary dystopia. That's what Arizona State University is doing with a new digital anthology called Visions, Ventures, Escape Velocities: A Collection of Space Futures.

When 'Star Wars' came to California: Documents reveal history behind original film

Director George Lucas filmed much of the 1977 blockbuster "Star Wars" in North Africa and the U.K., but to get one of the key shots in the film, the production turned to Death Valley National Park in California.

The reason? Lucas needed an elephant.

'Frankenstein Dreams': When Sci-fi lumbered into the Victorian Era

Victorian Science Fiction with a quote that is probably as true now as it was in 1818: "Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change."

Daisy Ridley says she won't play Rey anymore after 'Star Wars: Episode IX'

By Dave Trumbore, Collider

Daisy Ridley returns as Rey in Rian Johnson's "Star Wars: The Last Jedi", bringing her feisty, Force-wielding character back in a big way. But "Star Wars" fans better enjoy the on-screen moments with Ridley's Rey while they can, because after the concluding chapter of the current trilogy, she's probably done with the franchise.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi's Supreme Leader Snoke is not a Sith Lord

By Bryan Abrams

You'd have been forgiven for assuming that Supreme Leader Snoke, played by Andy Serkis, was a Sith Lord. While we only saw him in holographic form in The Force Awakens, it was made crystal clear he was the man-er, being-in charge.

Exploring the Skelligs: Irish islands feel the Force

By Wes Little, CNN

Cinematic even before you add the Millennium Falcon. You can see why "Star Wars" producers chose Skellig Michael as a location in a galaxy far, far away.The small rocky island sits about 8 miles off the southwest coast of Ireland. It hosts a UNESCO World Heritage Site, an ancient Christian monastery famous for its architecture consisting of stone "beehive" huts built without mortar.

Netflix releases trailer for 'Black Museum,' ahead of 'Black Mirror' season four

Netflix has released the trailer for 'Black Mirror' season four episode titled 'Black Museum.' The intriguing and dark series that has been likened to a modern day 'Twilight Zone' has fans eagerly waiting for the next installment, even though Netflix has yet to announce the season's official premiere date.

Is it possible that even those responsible for 'Star Wars: the last Jedi' don't know who Rey's parents are?

It seems that even the star and director of 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' don't know the answer to what is possibly the new trilogy's biggest mystery: who are Rey's parents? Filmgoers witnessed a young Rey being abandoned on the desert planet Jakku. Obviously, her folks aren't some random, never-before-seen nobodies.