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Star Wars Celebration 2019 Confirmed for April in Chicago
Lucasfilm has announced the next Star Wars Celebration will take place April 2019 in Chicago. Dating back to 2015, the studio had made their trademark convention an annual event, shining a spotlight on the various corners of the franchise while promoting the next movie on the slate. Fans had gotten used to Celebration being a part of the yearly pop culture landscape, but Lucasfilm opted to bypass the convention in 2018 (the first Celebration-less year since 2014) for reasons unknown. Shortly before Celebration Orlando in 2017, it was confirmed the convention would return in 2019.
Followers of the galaxy far, far away have eagerly anticipated an update ever since. Just last month, it was rumored Celebration 2019 would be headed to Anaheim, but that was never confirmed. Now, the news comes straight from Lucasfilm. Attendees should start making plans for a trip to the Windy City.
On today's episode of the Star Wars Show, the first official details for Celebration 2019 were unveiled. It will run from April 11-15, 2019 at McCormick Place in Chicago. Tickets for the event go on sale June 5 at starwarscelebration.com.
There's currently no word on what panels will be featured, though there is one rather obvious possibility. 2019 sees the release of Episode IX, and Lucasfilm will surely want to drum up excitement for the sequel trilogy finale with a star-studded presentation. Both The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi saw teaser trailer screen at Celebration their respective years of release, so odds are Star Wars 9 will follow suit. The timing of Celebration (April, just like 2015 and 2017) is no coincidence and is proof Lucasfilm will look to replicate the marketing patterns for the first two saga installments of this new era. Fans will also probably get to see the first Episode IX poster at a movie panel.
Lucasfilm is as busy as ever planning Star Wars content, so Episode IX is just the tip of the iceberg. In all likelihood, there will be new information regarding the Resistance animated series and Jon Favreau's live-action TV show. Plus, with Star Wars 9 the last officially dated movie on Lucasfilm's slate currently, there's a distinct possibility we learn more about their future plans for the films into 2020 and beyond. It's also likely more books and comic series are confirmed at Celebration, so whatever your favorite tastes are, there's bound to be something at the event you'll enjoy. History's shown Lucasfilm knows how to put on a show, and they'll pull out all the stops for the convention that marks the 20th anniversary of Celebration.
