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As a part of the contemporary media landscape and entertainment industry at large, trailers for feature length coming attractions have become a seemingly indisposable facet of major film studios' marketing campaigns for the biggest theatrical releases. Given that precedent, it's no surprise that the recently reestablished Star Wars franchise would be towing the line pretty hard when it comes to releasing a whole slew of trailers leading up to the release of the first anthology film in the series, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, later this week.

By all accounts, Disney is slated to make a real killing with Rogue One based on positive early reactions following its world premiere alone - thus setting the table for another mammoth sized box office hit, with the release of Star Wars: Episode VIII next year. A lot of that anticipation and hype can be attested to Disney/Lucasfilm's dedication to releasing thrilling trailers. Nevertheless, one Episode VIII actor would be okay if the next movie in the series didn't have any trailers at all.

During a conversation with Cinema Blend, Star Wars actor Adam Driver - who fans know for his stirring role as central antagonist Kylo Ren in The Force Awakens - made the case for releasing Episode VIII without any trailers or marketing campaign. Speaking to what would be a bold move on the behalf of Disney/Lucasfilm and Episode VIII director Rian Johnson, Driver stated:

"I think that’d be bold. I’d love it, yeah! Then no one would know anything. The less people know, I feel like, the more exciting… the more of an event it is."

Adam Driver as Kylo Ren Starkiller Base

However impressive and unexpected such a move would be from a purely artistic perspective, the idea of releasing a major motion picture without trailers or a larger marketing campaign is something that's entirely unprecedented in the world of filmmaking. Popular recording artists like Beyoncé and Radiohead might be able to pull off a silent release within the realm of music, but save for this year's 10 Cloverfield Lane - which debuted its first trailer only two months before it hit theaters - the same is a hard sell for major Hollywood films like Star Wars: Episode VIII.

Driver's intentions are certainly worth considering in the future, as the concept of releasing a new movie without any contextualizing trailers - or even movie posters - would make for an entirely novel viewer experience unregulated by commercial interests. But Star Wars: Episode VIII is probably not the movie to test the waters with such a bold experiment - especially considering the legions of fans eagerly awaiting to learn each and every bit of trivia and factoid about the film.

NEXT: Snoke May Be a Practical Effect in Star Wars Episode VIII

Source: Cinema Blend

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