Anakin Skywalker, Oscar Isaac feels your pain.
Back in Attack of the Clones, Hayden Christensen’s young Vader voiced his hatred for sand in a now infamous scene and it seems another Star Wars actor now shares his pain. In this new featurette, the aforementioned Poe Dameron star opens up about the downside of filming Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in the Jordan desert. Apparently, there’s a lot of sand. Like, a lot.
Entertainment Weekly debuted this latest clip from the special features on the TROS home release and it focuses on the filming of the chase sequence on Pasaana, in which Poe and the others have to flee from the First Order’s troopers across the dunes. For the most part, Isaac had a blast shooting the scene. “It was really exhilarating,” the actor recalls. “It was the most fun I’ve had.”
However, what wasn’t so fun was the use of fans, which whipped up the sand and blew it straight at the cast. “You’d just have all this sand blown into your eyes,” Isaac continued. “I’d go home after some days and, like, tons of sand would just be pouring out of my hair.” Like a Chosen One once said, sand – it’s course, rough, irritating and it gets everywhere.
Oscar Isaac and J.J. Abrams take us behind the scenes of '#StarWars: The Rise of Skywalker' in this exclusive video: https://t.co/G9chJ2MAlV pic.twitter.com/X5ND7GgEgk
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) March 11, 2020
The clip also showcases J.J. Abrams’ adaptable, easy-going directorial style. The filmmaker notes that he “always like[s] making discoveries” on set. Despite all the pre-production that goes into making a Star Wars movie, Abrams believes “the truth is, when you’re on the set, you discover things you know you need that you never would’ve known [otherwise].”
As an example of how things can change on the go, the clip sees Abrams blocking the chase scene with Isaac, before having to inform a crew member that they have to turn the whole speeder around to accommodate the new plan. Hilariously, the guy takes an age to respond, clearly none too pleased with the director.
Be sure to catch Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker on Digital HD from next Tuesday, March 17th and then on Blu-Ray/DVD from March 31st.