As the Star Wars franchise prepares to celebrate its 40th anniversary this week, the next chapter in its saga will be very much front and center, thanks to a bountiful new shoot from the set of Episode VIII, The Last Jedi, by Annie Leibovitz for Vanity Fair. The relationship between Vanity Fair and Star Wars stretches back long ago and far, far away to when Leibovitz captured the cast of The Phantom Menace for the series’s return in 1999. The magazine has gone on to document each of the subsequent Star Wars episodes, including 2015’s blockbuster The Force Awakens.
Today, Vanity Fair debuts the cast of its follow-up, The Last Jedi, on four different covers, marking the first time we’ve released alternate Star Wars covers. Leibovitz’s full portfolio will be online Wednesday, along with our story on the making of the new film, written by David Kamp. The Summer issue of Vanity Fair will be on newsstands in New York and Los Angeles on June 1, and nationally on June 6. Readers in search of the full Vanity Fair-Star Wars experience, including all four covers, a commemorative poster, and early access, on May 24, to our digital editions, with lightsaber effects by Industrial Light & Magic, can purchase here.
The first cover features at least one Jedi—who may or may not be the last. Leibovitz captured Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill on the blustery cliff on the planet Ahch-To (on location in Ireland) where Luke Skywalker was last seen with Ridley’s Rey. Ridley stares down the camera and into the future of the galaxy.
The three First Order heavies—Captain Phasma (Gwendoline Christie), General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson), and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver)—on display here are looking a little worse for wear following the events of The Force Awakens. The new portrait offers fans a first look at Christie in character with her helmet off. Driver tells Kamp in our cover story that Kylo Ren’s wounds go much deeper than the fearsome new scar on his face. If history is any indication, the second installment of the trilogy will be the dark side’s time to shine.
Fan favorite intergalactic flyboy pin-up, Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), is on the third cover, with friends Finn (John Boyega) and the droid BB-8 (as himself). Boyega, healthy and ready for action, is looking much better here than in his comatose state at the conclusion of The Force Awakens. There are some hints about his Last Jedi escapades in our cover story. He’s joined both on those adventures and in this portrait by Rose Tico (Kelly Marie Tran)—a Resistance maintenance worker and the new character with the most screen time in Episode VIII.
No reflection on the franchise’s four decades would be complete without a tribute to Carrie Fisher, who died in December 2016. This final cover features only her character, Leia—the general, princess, and rebel who has been a figure central to the Star Wars universe from the very outset.
Kamp’s story is filled with reflections from the cast and director Rian Johnson on the singular energy and warm enthusiasm Fisher brought to her Last Jedi role. And Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy reflects on the expanded role Leia was meant to play in the trilogy’s final installment.
Check back Wednesday for more from our exclusive The Last Jedi reveal.
