Jet into hype space to escape the dark side
The money generated by the latest Star Wars movie is huge, not least because of the hype
We all deserve a break from the intense intrigue, back-stabbing and political manoeuvring of 2017. That’s why we will be watching Star Wars: The Last Jedi, a movie about intrigue, back-stabbing and political manoeuvring.But it’s all done in a distant time in a universe far, far away with lightsabres and a cast of fabulous young actors.Well, mostly young. Mark Hamill — the original Luke Skywalker — will be making a return for the fifth time. Only Chewbacca (six), R2-D2 (seven) and C-3PO (nine) have put in more appearances.At 66, Hamill is still the star of the franchise.The Last Jedi took US$220m on its opening weekend, second only to the $248m haul of The Force Awakens in 2015.The franchise’s 10 episodes have cost $926m to produce but have returned a staggering $8bn at the box office worldwide. That’s the equivalent of R11.5bn ... R11.2bn ... R11.1bn — damn this Ramaphosa rand.The money is huge not least because of the hype.When Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau wore a pair of ...
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