When the First Order returns in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, they'll be looking to seize on the current chaotic state of the galaxy. For the most part, Star Wars: The Force Awakens accomplished what it set out to do with flying colors, bringing fans and audiences back into that iconic universe for the first time in several years, with a film that felt like both a genuine callback to the originals and a worthy successor. But that didn't mean director J.J. Abrams and co. stopped themselves from leaving fans with some major, thought-provoking questions either, specifically about the future of the universe and most of the film's main characters by the time The Force Awakens had cut to black.

With writer and director Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi set to hit theaters later this year, though, hopefully, fans will finally get answers to some of their most burning questions. And aside from just the mystery surrounding Rey's (Daisy Ridley) parentage or how Luke (Mark Hamill) will react to being forced out of hiding, one of the most interesting questions fans were left after The Force Awakens with was how the galaxy was going to be left now that The First Order had completely destroyed The Republic.

During today's special Last Jedi panel at Star Wars Celebration Orlando, Johnson took the time to tease the outcome of that very event in the new film. To put it simply, it doesn't sound like losing Starkiller Base is going to stop The First Order in any way shape or form from trying to conquer the rest of the galaxy once and for all:

"Well yeah, I mean Starkiller Base - big loss, big loss. But they did manage to take out the seat of the Republic, and that's thrown the galaxy into chaos. And The First Order are jumping on that at the beginning of our movie, very aggressively, not sitting on their hands. They're making some big moves at the start of our film, so things are gonna get dire."

This was just one of a couple big reveals that Johnson and the rest of the panelists made throughout the entirety of The Last Jedi panel, before revealing The Last Jedi's film's first official teaser trailer and poster, much to the excitement of Star Wars fans everywhere. The fact that Johnson is so quick to confirm that the destruction of the Republic will have some major consequences in the new film, only acts as further proof of how in tune with this sequel he and his entire team appear to be.

Considering that the fates of Kylo Ren, General Hux, and Supreme Leader Snoke are some of the biggest questions that fans have about The Last Jedi, the confirmation that they'll be back in full form by the time the new film begins can only mean good things for the how the film picks up from where The Force Awakens left off. After all, one thing that the Star Wars prequels introduced into the Star Wars franchise for the first time really, was the politics at the heart of the entire galaxy, whereas the Original Trilogy mostly just focused on the conflict between the Empire and the Rebellion, and Luke and Darth Vader. If everything is able to live up to its promise, however, The Last Jedi might just end up being the perfect marriage between those two approaches.

Source: Star Wars Celebration