With Star Wars: The Force Awakens set to debut in less than four months (and no doubt take some box office records upon its release), Disney is already feeling the Force, as it were, with the return of the popular space franchise. Tomorrow, a new force will arise with the arrival of various toys based on Force Awakens, as part of an event that’s being named “Force Friday”.
As reported by USA Today, various toys based on the film will arrive on store shelves tonight at midnight, with millions of fans picking up everything from action figures to Sphero’s custom BB-8 droid to other knick-knacks – including the return of the Millennium Falcon spaceship, which hasn’t been in production since the old Kenner days.
Steve Sansweet, an avid Star Wars collector and author who works as Lucasfilm’s fan relations advisor, stated, “There’s a synergistic history between the toys and the movies. If you go back to the very beginning, and that memory is still there in a lot of people, it was the start of merchandising of motion pictures.”
The main location to be — at least, according to Sansweet, is Toys ‘R’ Us in Times Square, New York City, where a massive midnight launch will take place, featuring action figures and more. Other retailers are taking part as well, selling everything from Lego kits to a custom pilot jacket (worn by Finn in the film) that’s being sold at the Disney Store.
Back when the original Star Wars film, A New Hope, launched way back in 1977, licensing for toys was far different, as they weren’t released at the same time as the film. And how people played with them was, too. “There was no home video,” said Sansweet. “So it was really the only way, by taking your action figures and vehicles and things like that, for kids to really re-create scenes from Star Wars.”
LucasFilm had plenty to say about the “Force Friday” event. “Star Wars toys have always played an important role in how our fans interact with the saga,” said LucasFilm president Kathleen Kennedy. The new products, she assured, “will continue that tradition.”
The “Force Friday” event has certainly been gaining huge buzz online. Last week, a massive YouTube event took place, where the new toys were unveiled for the first time. (A portion of that livestream can be found below.) On top of that, the #ForceFriday hashtag has a serious amount of traction on Twitter, where fans and companies alike are discussing the forthcoming toys — including the “life-size” model of the BB-8 droid being introduced. (It’ll set consumers back $150.)
Meanwhile, the wait for the actual movie continues, as The Force Awakens isn’t set to hit theaters until December 18th. Still, at least people have something to play with in the meantime.
