Star Wars: JJ Abrams explains why Episode IX is called The Rise of Skywalker

'When you see the movie, you’ll see how it’s intended and what it means,' says the director

JJ Abrams has revealed why Star Wars Episode IX has been called The Rise of Skywalker, explaining how the title fulfils the “weird responsibility” of bringing the entire franchise to an end.

The director spoke to ET Live at the Star Wars Celebration convention in Chicago, where the film’s trailer and title were both unveiled.

“The title feels like it’s the right title for this movie and I know that it’s provocative and asks a bunch of questions, but I think when you see the movie, you’ll see how it’s intended and what it means,” Abrams told the network.

“But in the flow of titles, this movie had a very weird responsibility.

“It had to be the end of not just three movies, but nine movies, and the idea of having to incorporate the stories that have come before, strangely, is the story of the movie, which is to say it’s the characters in the film inheriting everything that’s come before in previous generations, whether it’s sins of the father, whether it’s the wisdom they’ve acquired, and the question is can this new generation... are they up to the task? Can they stand up to what they have to?”

He added: “So in a way I feel like we, coming into this movie, have inherited a lot, and the question is ‘can we do enough?’ – [that’s the] question we ask ourselves every day.”

Abrams declined to say more on Rey’s parental heritage, which many fans expect to be one of the central themes of the film.

Click here to read our live coverage of the Star Wars Celebration.