The very first footage from Star Wars: Episode 8 just premiered, nearly two years out from the Dec. 18, 2017 release date. Billed as the Star Wars: Episode VIII Production Announcement , the new footage makes a couple of promises about the upcoming sequel to The Force Awakens. But this is new Star Wars footage, so give it a watch before engaging any further with these utterly Jedi-less words…

‘Star Wars: Episode 8’ First Teaser - Production Begins

Here’s what’s revealed in our very first look at footage from Star Wars: Episode 8.

• If you’ve been following the Episode 8 production closely then you probably already knew that filming had returned to Skellig Michael, the Irish island where Luke finds Rey at the end of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

• Luke’s hair is still a lustrous, dirty, hippy blond. That salt and pepper beard is everything we want in a Jedi Master.

• It looks like Star Wars: Episode 8 will open almost exactly where The Force Awakens ends, except from Luke’s perspective instead of Rey’s. Could this suggest a silent prologue about Luke’s lonely, ascetic life leading up to this moment?

Disney also announced new cast members concurrent with the release of this first Star Wars: Episode 8 teaser. Laura Dern, Benicio Del Toro (long rumored, now confirmed) and newcomer Kelly Marie Tran will be joining the cast of Star Wars: Episode 8.

The most surprising bit is that we’re seeing first footage from Star Wars: Episode 8 before a teaser or trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, due out this year (Dec. 16). Disney seems determined to keep the hype high for main Star Wars episodes.

With our first look at Episode 8 coming this early, the marketing machine for Rogue One may be about to fire up.