The Biggest Easter Eggs In The Force Awakens
J.J. Abrams' hotly anticipated Star Wars: The Force Awakens is—predictably—chock full of Easter eggs for longtime fans. You knew you'd have to watch out for them, and that you might have to pay extra-close attention. As it turns out, that wasn't quite true. That's because there are so many Easter eggs in The Force Awakens, we're not even sure we caught them all. Watch our video above of hidden treasures—some that were super obscure as well as others that that were not so hidden. And be sure to read about even more below. And beware: major spoilers ahead.
We've got FN-2187's number
What's in a name? Apparently quite a bit, at least when it comes to Finn. Prior to earning his new name from best bro Poe Dameron, Finn's Stormtrooper identificationo number is FN-2187. While that number doesn't seem altogether significant at first glance, it's actually the number of the cell block where Princess Leia is held in the very first Star Wars movie. Even more significant, 21-87 is the name of a short, abstract Canadian film from 1963 that was a huge influence on George Lucas as a young man.
Yoda and Obi-Wan appear during Rey's vision
Eagle-eared (is that a thing?) fans watching The Force Awakens probably heard some familiar voices when Rey had her Force vision in the middle of the movie. That's because J.J. Abrams stuffed it full of important voices from Star Wars history, including lines from Jedi masters Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. What's even cooler is that Abrams got Ewan McGregor to record a brand new line of dialogue for the film, while some fancy editing tricks allowed the voice of the late Alec Guinness to speak directly to Rey in the vision. Frank Oz, the voice of Yoda, came in to record a line too, but Abrams opted to stick with the classics and use one of Yoda's lines from an older Star Wars movie instead.
Secret Stormtroopers (and Simon Pegg)
As far as security is concerned, it may not be the best idea to put your entire army of Stormtroopers in face-blocking helmets. It could be anyone under there...like Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, or James Bond. That's right: while filming parts of 2015's Spectre, Daniel "James Bond" Craig sauntered to where The Force Awakens was being filmed, since both productions were making use of England's Pinewood Studios. Craig plays the Stormtrooper on whom Rey successfully uses the Jedi mind trick...though he's uncredited in the role, and actually vehemently denied playing the part when asked about it during Spectre's press tour.
And Craig isn't the only celeb to make a stealthy appearance in Episode VII. Apparently composer Michael Giacchino (who's worked with J.J. Abrams on Star Trek, Lost, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, and more) and Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich both appear as Stormtroopers FN-3181 and FN-9330. Then there's Star Wars megafan Kevin Smith, who provides the voice for the Stormtrooper who spots the Resistance's X-Wings as they're flying toward Maz Kanata's bar. No wonder the First Order is beaten so easily. They'll let anyone be a Stormtrooper. Oh, and Unkar Plutt? The creep who's such a jerk to Rey at the beginning of the film? Under all that alien junk is Simon Pegg, one of the biggest celebrity Star Wars fans of all.
Maz Kanata's secret history
Most fans spotted this one when it flashed during The Force Awakens' early trailers, but it's still pretty cool. The flags decorating the exterior of Maz Kanata's bar all seem to correspond to something from Star Wars' history, many having first appeared during the podrace scene from Episode I: The Phantom Menace. There are also some flags that bear the same symbols that appear on Boba Fett's outfit from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
And there's more! Many fans theorize that the chest that contains Luke Skywalker's lightsaber is the very same one that was in Obi-Wan Kenobi's home back in the first Star Wars. It's pretty likely that this was an intentional nod on the part of J.J. Abrams and not a coincidence. As to whether or not it's the same chest in the world of the story is another question entirely...
Meanwhile, nepotism is alive and well in the Resistance. Carrie Fisher's daughter Billie Lourd appears in the Resistance's secret base in the second half of the film.
Ralph McQuarrie concept art brought to life
Part of what makes Star Wars so incredible is the inspirational design work from Ralph McQuarrie, whose concept art helped George Lucas sell the first film to Twentieth Century Fox in the first place. While plenty changed from McQuarrie's designs by the time cameras started to roll, his original art has left a lasting impression on Star Wars fans for years. And it would seem that J.J. Abrams was no exception.
Take The Force Awakens' heroine Rey, for example. Her costume early in the film is clearly inspired by original concept art McQuarrie created, back when Lucas considered making Star Wars' protagonist a woman. Then there's the archway on Jakku
"This Is A Rescue"
When Finn takes Poe out of captivity early in the film, he takes off his helmet and tells the pilot, "This is a rescue!" That bit of dialogue is a clear reference to the very first time Luke meets Leia in the original Star Wars. You remember: he takes off the helmet of his Stormtrooper disguise and says, quite simply, "I'm Luke Skywalker, I'm here to rescue you!" Finn may not be the next Luke Skywalker (that seems to be Rey's role) but he's definitely on a similar path. Another great moment comes later when Han utters that oft-repeated line from the franchise, "I've got a bad feeling about this." Still, no one says "delusions of grandeur," but hopefully that'll show up in Episode VIII.
More Fuzzy Parsec Math
One of the most infamous lines in the original Star Wars is Han Solo's boasts that the Millennium Falcon "made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs"...despite the fact that a parsec is a unit of distance, not time. It's a gaffe that the nerdiest fans love and hate at the same time—and it the cast of The Force Awakens confront it head first. We hear Rey and Han talking about just how many parsecs it took to make the Kessel Run when the two meet on the Falcon...and neither of them seem to care much about what a parsec actually is.
The Wilhelm Scream
If you know what the "Wilhelm Scream" is, then congratulations: you are a true film nerd. For the rest of you, however, here's a quick primer. First recorded in 1951, and made famous by a character named Private Wilhelm in the 1953 film The Charge at Feather River, the Wilhelm Scream has been inserted into every single Star Wars film, not to mention about 200 others. If you keep your ears sharp during Finn and Poe's escape from the First Order hangar bay, an anonymous (and unlucky) Stormtrooper belts the scream out after being killed by a turbolaser.
Finn Finds Some Old Toys
While rifling through the Millennium Falcon's stuff to care for Chewbacca's wounds, Finn finds a pretty familiar looking sphere: the flying remote that Luke trained with on the Falcon way back in the first Star Wars film. He pulls it out of a drawer, looks at it, then tosses it aside as he keep searching for medical supplies. Later, he bumps into the holo-chess board that featured so prominently in the original movie, too.
Get Lost
These aren't necessarily Star Wars Easter eggs, but they're definitely part and parcel with the involvement of J.J. Abrams. Two actors known for working with the Force Awakens director have relatively big cameos in the film. First there's Greg Grunberg, who's appeared in Abrams' shows Alias and Lost, as the hilariously named X-Wing pilot Snap Wexley. Then there's Lost's Ken Leung, who shows up here as Admiral Statura. We're pretty sure we also spotted Lost's Henry Ian Cusick as another X-Wing pilot, but he doesn't show up on IMDB, so we could be wrong on that one.
The Starkiller Base
This is by far one of the biggest Easter eggs in all of The Force Awakens, and true fans spotted its significance right away. The film's villains, the First Order, have taken a page from the playbook of the Empire, and built themselves a gigantic super-weapon capable of destroying entire systems, suns and all. It's not the size of a moon—rather, it's the size of an entire planet. But instead of calling it the Death Star, or the Death World, or the Super Space Gun (our choice), it's called...the Starkiller Base. And what's so important about the name "Starkiller"? It's the original surname that George Lucas had intended to give his protagonist—before he decided on "Skywalker." While replicating the Death Star, but bigger, isn't necessarily the most inspired move in the galaxy, you gotta give props to Abrams and company for picking such a perfect name.
Gonk Droids, Because Why Not?
One of the crappier robots from the original Star Wars trilogy is the GNK power droid, known more colloquially as the "Gonk Droid." Why? Because that's what he says: "gonk." It's basically a little garbage can with legs, and it sucks. But despite its utter lameness, and the fact that the filmmakers are more than capable of improving on its terrible design, the Gonk Droid shows up a couple of times throughout The Force Awakens. The droid has no bearing on the narrative whatsoever, so it's hard not to interpret its presence here as director J.J. Abrams' way of telling fans that he gets what they love about Star Wars, gonks and all.
Tripping the name Phantasmic
By now, everyone knows that Captain Phasma, the shiny Stormtrooper boss played by Gwendoline Christie, is a bit of a bust in The Force Awakens. But we've heard that she'll be back in action in Episode VIII...and hopefully she'll do more than get thrown into a trash compactor off-screen. Meanwhile, the origins of the good Captain's name are kind of interesting. According to an interview with Entertainment Weekly, J.J. Abrams was inspired by one of his favorite movies: "Phasma I named because of the amazing chrome design that came from Michael Kaplan's wardrobe team. It reminded me of the ball in Phantasm,'and I just thought, Phasma sounds really cool."
And we can't forget about the Abednedo X-Wing pilot, Ello Asty, who's named after the Beastie Boys' album Hello Nasty. As if you hadn't figured out from the appearance of the Beastie Boys' "Sabotage" in 2009's Abrams-directed Star Trek, the guy's a fan.
Chewbacca roars at robots
When Chewbacca first encounters BB-8 in The Force Awakens, he roars at the adorable little droid, frightening him. Some fans have pointed out that the exact same thing happens when he encounters the cute little mouse droid that rolls up to him in the Death Star in the first Star Wars. Considering that Chewie's a talented mechanic, we can only conclude one thing: he hates anything that might be cuter than him. It's something of a miracle Yoda survived his meeting with Chewbacca in Revenge of the Sith.
"This will begin to make things right."
Whether or not this is an Easter egg is debatable, but some fans can't help but see this as a necessary inclusion on a list like this. The first line uttered in The Force Awakens comes from mysterious Force-knower, Lor San Tekka, played by Max von Sydow. He says it when he gives Poe Dameron the map that leads to Luke Skywalker, so it definitely makes sense for what's going on in the story. However, lots of fans have taken it to be something of a dig at George Lucas and his much derided prequel trilogy. When you consider the fact that The Force Awakens is the first new Star Wars movie since Return of the Jedi that's been loved by fans and critics alike, it starts to make sense.