‘The Force Awakens’ Has J.J. Abrams’ Signature Easter Egg

J.J. Abrams squeezes a few Abrams-specific easter eggs into Star Wars: The Force Awakens, including a couple of LOST stars in small, supporting roles and at least one little nod you probably didn’t notice — though it’s appeared in almost every one of Abrams’ movie and TV projects. Did you catch it? Nope, it’s not Slusho.

HitFix picked up on the little Abrams easter egg in The Force Awakens, but it’s not a nod to Star Trek or other Star Wars movies. It’s something that the director has included in many of the shows and films he’s directed / produced: when Daisy Ridley’s Rey first encounters adorable droid BB-8, she gives it instructions on how to navigate the dusty town center of Jakku by pointing it toward “Kelvin Ridge.”

Kelvin was the name of Abrams’ grandfather, who helped shape and inspire the director’s interests and with whom he shared a very close relationship. “Kelvin” also appeared in Star Trek, as the name of the ship on which Captain Kirk was born, and in Mission: Impossible III as “H. Kelvin,” the intended recipient of a postcard intercepted by Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt. It’s also the name of a chain of gas stations in Super 8.

On the TV end of things, Clancy Brown’s character in LOST was named Kelvin Joe Inman, and Leonard Nimoy’s Dr. William Bell once worked at Kelvin Genetics on Fringe.

There are plenty of other little nods in The Force Awakens, but perhaps none more personal and sweet as this one.

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