“There has been an awakening. Have you felt it?”10 years ago,Star Warsreawakened, a cinematic giant emerging from its slumber to conquer the galaxy once more. A decade later, the franchise has, sadly, returned to a dormant state (at least as far asStar Warsmoviesgo), but that just makes the palpable sense of excitement and anticipation created byStar Wars: The Force Awakens’ first teaser trailer all the more impressive.
Released by Lucasfilm on August 10, 2025, the firstThe Force Awakensteaser was a masterclass in, well, teasing. After a build-up stage - from the shock ofDisney buying Lucasfilmto announcing Episode VII, to heavy scrutiny of where everyone was placed in the first cast photo - this made it feel truly real. I can still remember watching it over and over again that day, and I’m not sure that it’s actually been bettered as a pure moment of being a fan, nor oneupcomingStar Warsmoviescan match.
Episode VII Was About Bringing Star Wars Back
I am very much a classic millennialStar Warsfan, who grew up watching the original trilogy on repeat in the 1990s. I can still remember my glorious gold-and-black VHS box set (and wish I still had it), and obsessively playing with figures that would be worth a lot more money if I’d kept them in the packaging, but have far less sentimental value. I never cared much for the prequels - and still don’t - but,like manyStar Warsfans of that time, the OT was an obsession that never really went away, but certainly dulled as I discovered new interests.
The Force Awakens- and it really started with the teaser - was the first timeStar Warshad fully returned for me as an adult. Things are rarely the same through an adult lens compared to a child’s one, for better or worse, butthat teaser felt like being transported back in time almost 20 years. It reawakened that sense of wonder, that love, and ultimately that obsession. WhileStar Warshad been a huge part of my life as a kid and teenager, it hadn’tquiteso much as an adult… until that moment.
The Force Awakens' Trailer Led To A Year Of Incredible Excitement & Theorizing
The Star Wars Speculation Went To A Whole New Level
There’s really not a lot toThe Force Awakens’ teaser trailer. J.J. Abrams loves his secrecy anyway, but this was still over a year away from release. It’s barely even footage, and nonetheless, it’s an incredibly exciting hint of what’s to come. A Stormtrooper hero? A mysterious girl!I can still remember being more than a little shocked when the masked villain’s lightsaber was revealed to be a crossguardone; and even more so, cheering, my heart soaring, whenthe Millennium Falconitself soared into the sky, John Williams’ music right there with it.
Aside from the oh-so-comforting sense of nostalgia, and the emotional feeling that Star Wars was back, what this really drove us into was, for me, the most purely fun time to be a Star Wars fan that I’ve known as an adult.
Aside from the oh-so-comforting sense of nostalgia, and the emotional feeling thatStar Warswas back, what this really drove us into was, for me, the most purely fun time to be a fan that I’ve known as an adult. It led to over a year of theorizing and speculation, which ran completely wild at times (let’s not forget things like “Luke Skywalker is Kylo Ren” and “Darth Vader is back from the dead” were popular theories even close to release, although I guess in hindsight of Emperor Palpatine’s return, that second one isn’t too out there…).
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Abrams’ love of mystery boxes purposefully played into this, andwhile some of the speculation was inherently silly, it was also just damn enjoyable. 2015 was the year I fully started writing about movies for a living, just a few months after this teaser dropped, and I can still remember conversations about the movie damn-near every single day (mostly with Alex Leadbeater, nowScreen Rant’s Content Director!), and somehow almost a decade later I’m still writing about it.
Theories don’t make a movie good, of course (and caused problems later down the line), but the theories were good and fun becausethe movie looked good and fun.The glimpses of Rey, Finn, Kylo Ren, et al were incredibly tantalizing, the teases of plot we did get were thrilling. It made you excited; it made you - or at least, me - want to talk about it. To feel giddy while obsessing over every single detail, which is one of the joys of being a fan of a franchise like this.
If there’s any part of the Disney era that I’m already nostalgic for, it’s that feeling, because it’s the same feeling Star Wars gives as a kid, and is what it’s all about.
The year or so from the first teaser through to release is the most energized, excited, and unified (or as close as it can possibly get) I can really remember theStar Warsfandom being. There was just an absurd level of hype around it, and while the movies didn’t entirely deliver and that feeling would wane, wasn’t it nice while it lasted? If there’s any part of the Disney era that I’m already nostalgic for, it’s that feeling, because it’s the same feelingStar Warsgives as a kid, and is what it’s all about.
Star Wars Movies Couldn’t Match The Pre-Release Hype
The Sequel Trilogy Was Inevitably Disappointing
Unfortunately,Star Wars: The Force Awakenscouldn’t live up to the hype. In fairness, what movie could? It’s an unreasonable expectation - I can remember that moment, between“a long time ago…”and the opening crawl, where there was just a silent anticipation, as probably the most excited and nervous I’ve ever been in a movie theater, so of course anything that came after wouldn’t be what everyone wanted. But, toThe Force Awakens’ vast credit, it came close.
“Abrams and his team create the sort of Star Wars movie that OT fans have been hoping for, while taking the sort of restrained approach to utilizing current film technology, in a way that many detractors of the prequels wish Lucas had."-Screen Rant’sStar Wars: The Force Awakensreview.
Yes, some of the sheen has worn off now, and it’s even clearer to see howit’s just a beat-for-beat remake of the originalStar Warsbeneath that glossy surface. Similarly, it’s possible to look back at this and see how Abrams’ mystery boxes didn’t contain enough substance for the future installments, which for me is the biggest factor inStar Wars: The Last Jedibecoming so controversial, not Rian Johnson’s decisions.
The sequel era as a whole is defined by being disjointed, divisive, and disappointing, which is somewhat warranted, but not completely. It’s at once held back by movies that were overly ambitious or not ambitious enough. But there’s a lot of good there, too, especially in its new characters like Rey, for which credit should go back toThe Force Awakens' castand Abrams. For me, the sequels have one good movie (TFA), one great movie (The Last Jedi, though I understand a lot of the criticisms), and one disaster (The Rise of Skywalker, though even that had some good ideas).
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Still, I can’t be too disappointed when looking back on the era as a whole. No, it will never be the original trilogy for me, and it was never going to be, because that’s the difference between watching something as a kid vs. being an adult. But for a generation, the sequels will be to them what the OT was to me, and that’s pretty damn cool.
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Star Warsneeds new generations of fans and, ultimately, to grow far beyond those first three movies. But, more than that, for those 88 seconds or so in the first teaser, and for many more moments in the year after(“Chewie, we’re home”still makes me a bit emotional),Star Warsbrought back that feeling, which I’d never expected it to do.
Can Star Wars Movies Ever Recapture That Sense Of Magic?
The Mandalorian & Grogu Will Be The Next Movie To Try
There are several upcomingStar Warsmovies, aiming to get the franchise back (again) as a cinematic force, years afterThe Rise of Skywalkerended the Skywalker saga. By the timeThe Mandalorian and Grogureleases, it’ll have been over a decade sinceThe Force Awakens, and it has a similarly tall order. I don’t doubt it will be a success; that fans new and old will once again go gaga for Grogu. But will it be the same feeling when that teaser drops?
The Mandalorian and Groguis the only officially datedStar Warsmovie, but Disney does also have July 03, 2025 staked out for another release.
Probably not. Firstly, expectations are different: we know who these upcoming characters are, for the most part, so it’s not as new. But I also think too much has happened since in the fandom, which has grown more divided and, in small parts, more toxic, which makes it difficult to imagine something like that year afterThe Force Awakens’ teaser.
That’s a shame, but also, it’s fine if it doesn’t feel the same.The Force Awakens’ marketing was like lightning in a bottle, because it’s rare to have something that makes you feel like a kid again when you’re an adult, you have bills to pay, your lower back hurts, your knees hurt, everything hurts, okay? And I think part of the problem with the reception toStar Warsis expecting that feeling. A sense of entitlement that it should cater only to fans who grew up with the original trilogy, that they know whatStar Wars isor should be more than anyone else, when that’s absolutely not the case.
I hope I loveThe Mandalorian and Grogu,Rey’s New Jedi Order movie, and everything else planned that Lucasfilm may or may not ever actually deliver on. But I also hope it gives other, newer, younger fans that same feelingStar Wars: The Force Awakensdid for me. That feeling thatStar Warsis pure magic, and it has been awakened once again.
Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens
Cast
Star Wars: The Force Awakens takes place 30 years after the fall of the Galactic Empire. It follows Han Solo and new allies, including Finn and Rey, as they confront the rising threat of Kylo Ren and his army of Stormtroopers while seeking the elusive Luke Skywalker.
