Star Wars: The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson has been taking a lot of heat for the creative liberties he took in the sequel. The film, which took place directly after The Force Awakens didn’t have the narrative luxury some of the other film have, with some sequels having months or years long gaps. This may explain why the Knights of Ren didn’t make an appearance in The Last Jedi. But it doesn’t explain how Johnson came to the decision to have Luke Skywalker Force Project himself from across the galaxy to confront his nephew, Kylo Ren, on the mining planet of Crait.

But the director is now taking the opportunity to explain some of those decisions. One comes down to being unable to due to screen time, while the other, he had to go back to the old “Jedi Texts” to prove such powers exist. Check them all out below.

To say that 2017 was an incredible year for films would be a vast understatement. The year was full of extraordinary films ranging from the typical blockbuster tentpoles like Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Wonder Woman to the indie darlings like The Big Sick and Lady Bird. And the best thing about it, a lot of these movies come from first-time directors, women, and veterans like Jordan Peele, Patty Jenkins, Greta Gerwig, and Rian Johnson. It’s not easy to see all of the films that are released within the one calendar year, but I make sure I damn well try to see as much as I can, and 2017 was no different. I went out to see over 100 films, and to narrow it down to 10 best within the field of exceptional titles that were released was hard. While best is subjective, I tried to narrow it down to the 10 films that meant the most to me that I enjoyed thoroughly.

So, you’ll find the 10 of my favorite movies of 2017 that I could not stop thinking about, along with a few honorable mentions. Check them all out here below.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi was a major hit over the weekend, earning over $220 million in the domestic box office. While the film is polarizing, no one can deny the profound impact that Carrie Fisher and her character of Princess Leia had on the immensely popular franchise. Having gone from princess to general, Fisher carved her own mark and defined what it means to be a badass woman. A notion that she had carried with her until her death, and one that has inspired not only her co-stars, but almost every woman on earth.

We had a chance to sit down with our fellow journalists to talk to the female cast of The Last Jedi about what it meant to them to star alongside Fisher and what they learned from her during the production of the film. Check out what they had to say here below.

Now that Star Wars: The Last Jedi has been released, fans have had time to digest and think about what they have just seen. It also means that there will be some spoiler pieces coming out this week. And we will be covering them as it pertains to the future of the franchise and Episode IX. So fair warning, if you haven’t seen the film yet, there will be spoilers in the following post. So if you haven’t seen it yet, then you might want to avoid this post. But if you have already seen it, and want to know more about Snoke’s role in The Last Jedi, continue reading.

Full disclosure, if you haven’t watched Star Wars: The Last Jedi, this latest article will be full of SPOILERS. It pertains to who Rey’s parents are and how it might have an impact on Episode IX. So again, if you haven’t seen the new movie and have been avoiding social media this past weekend – I should give you a medal for that if you have – then do not continue reading below. But if you have watched it, and are fully interested in where director Rian Johnson takes the franchise, then check out what he had to say below.