Suvudu Universe

With San Diego Comic Con only a few weeks away, Star Wars fans are eagerly waiting and gearing up for exclusive announcements and reveals. The highly anticipated animated series, Star Wars Rebels, is sure to be the main focus at this year’s event, while Star Wars: Episode VII takes a back seat and continues production abroad at Pinewood Studios. Here’s a collection of the latest news and what to expect at the mother of all pop culture conventions, SDCC.

Two New Cast Members

Although Episode VII may not have an extensive presence at this year’s SDCC, we could see more updates about the progress of the film, as seen with the latest casting announcement. Released this past weekend, two new cast members have been added to the current list of actors: Crystal Clarke and Pip Andersen. Both talents were selected at the open casting calls that had thousands flock to 11 different cities to attempt to get a part in the first installment of the sequel trilogy.

Clarke is an aspiring actor with her first feature appearance as the character Magali in a film also coming out in 2015, The Moon and the Sun, starring Pierce Brosnan and William Hurt. Andersen is also an actor and parkour expert, who showed off his skills in a 2012 advertisement for Spider-Man. Many have pegged Andersen as the Jedi type mainly because of his Jedi-like ability to soar through the air, perform wild flips, and land effortlessly on both feet. However, I see him more as the alien type. He could very well be part of a species that has those kinds of reflexes. Or, it could be that his parkour isn’t an essential trait for the movie. Whatever the case may be, I’m glad that Lucasfilm went for fresh new faces. (via StarWars.com)

SDCC Programming

Star Wars fans planning to make their way to San Diego will have an amazing schedule at SDCC this year. Disney and Lucasfilm have devised a program that highlights their current projects, with Star Wars Rebels taking the center stage on Thursday, July 24. Starting at 6PM PST, the panel will include executive producers Dave Filoni and Simon Kinberg as well as the main voice cast: Vanessa Marshall, Freddie Prinze Jr., Taylor Gray, Tiya Sircar, and Steve Blum.

On Friday, John Jackson Miller, Vanessa Marshall, Dave Filoni, and the rest of the Lucasfilm crew will take the stage again for the Star Wars: A New Dawn panel, the most highly anticipated novel (at least, for this fangirl) featuring Hera Syndulla and Kanan Jarrus from Star Wars Rebels and written by John Jackson Miller. Miller will also be attending the convention all four days, where he will be signing his books and an advanced copy of A New Dawn for fans.

Visit StarWars.com to browse through the rest of the Star Wars programming taking place at SDCC 2014.

A New Dawn Final Cover

The news surrounding the first Star Wars Rebels novel continues! Del Rey Books published the final book jacket for John Jackson Miller’s A New Dawn, which features stunning original art by Doug Wheatley.

Here’s the description of the book:

Ever since the Jedi were marked for death and forced to flee Coruscant, Kanan Jarrus has devoted himself to staying alive rather than serving the Force. Wandering the galaxy alone, from one anonymous job to another, he avoids trouble–especially with the Empire–at all costs. So when he discovers a deadly conflict brewing between ruthless Imperial forces and desperate revolutionaries, he’s not about to get caught in the crossfire. Then the brutal death of a friend at the Empire’s hands forces the ex-Jedi to make a choice: bow down to fear or stand up and fight.

But Jarrus won’t be fighting alone. Unlikely allies, including a bomb-throwing radical, a former Imperial surveillance agent, a vengeful security officer, and the mysterious Hera Syndulla–an agent provocateur with motives of her own–team up with Jarrus to challenge the Empire. As a crisis of apocalyptic proportions unfolds on the planet Gorse, they must stand together against one of the Emperor’s most fearsome enforcers–for the sake of a world and its people.

Star Wars 2014 Sampler

If you are unable to attend SDCC, fans still have an opportunity to read up on the future of Star Wars novels in the upcoming Star Wars 2014 Sampler. Set to be released on July 15, the sampler will have excerpts of A New Dawn by John Jackson Miller, Heir to the Jedi by Kevin Hearne, Tarkin by James Luceno, and Lords of the Sith by Paul S. Kemp. Currently found at Amazon for Kindle and Kindle app devices, the sampler will also be available to fans through a variety of other devices. More information will be released soon.

Poster

The latest Star Wars Rebels poster is not only exquisite, but it also does a fantastic job emulating the ever popular and classic posters of Drew Stuzan. Capturing the essence of Episode IV: A New Hope, the poster easily and instantly became a favorite of mine. Looking forward to having the real thing on my wall someday, preferably next to my Star Wars: The Clone Wars poster!

Chopper

The latest Star Wars video shows fans how our favorite grumpy astromech came to life–literally!