ILM visual-effects reel breaks down the secrets of The Rise of Skywalker

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Although STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER may not have lived up to its status as the grand finale of the nine-film Skywalker Saga for some, it did carry on the tradition of ground-breaking visual-effects which the franchise has become known for. Industrial Light & Magic have released a VFX reel which showcases the amazing amount of work which went into the the film as well as reveals a few interesting tidbits, such as how ILM repurposed scenes from STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS to create new footage of General Leia (Carrie Fisher) for THE RISE OF SKYWALKER and that Rey's (Daisy Ridley) leap over Kylo Ren's (Adam Driver) TIE Fighter was actually a practical stunt; Additionally, the shot of the Resistance's massive fleet of rag-tag ships near the end of the film is apparently made up of over 16,000 ships and took 8.4 million hours of processing time to render.

The home-media release date of STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER hasn't officially been revealed yet, but the film is expected to be included in a massive 27-disc 4K Ultra HD box-set which will include all nine-films in the Skywalker Saga, including THE PHANTOM MENACE, ATTACK OF THE CLONES, REVENGE OF THE SITH, A NEW HOPE, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, RETURN OF THE JEDI, THE FORCE AWAKENS, THE LAST JEDI, and THE RISE OF SKYWALKER. Previous reports had listed a March 31, 2020 release, which lines up with the release of the previous movies, but nothing is official just yet.