'Star Wars' Star Oscar Isaac on Practical Sets and Han Solo Style

Following the debut of that first awesome trailer for ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens,’ we’ve been dying to know more about the newest installment in the franchise. Among the things we’d love to know: how much of the set is practical, and just what is the deal with that crazy lightsaber? The actors involved in the film have been fairly tight-lipped, but Oscar Isaac, who was also recently cast in ‘X-Men: Apocalypse’ as the titular villain, has opened up in a new interview to shed some light on ‘The Force Awakens.’

Isaac is a very talented young actor who’s become increasingly in-demand over the last year, particularly after his performance in the Coen Brothers’ ‘Inside Llewyn Davis.’ He’s just signed on to play Apocalypse in the new ‘X-Men’ film, and he appears in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ as a rebel pilot. IGN had a chance to talk to Isaac about ‘Star Wars,’ and surprisingly, the actor had a lot to offer.

For fans worried about whether ‘The Force Awakens’ would continue the prequel trilogy’s trend of relying too heavily on CG, Isaac assures us that’s not the case:

There was just so much love poured into it and so much care. The thing is, when you rely on the latest technology to tell your story – and that’s it – that dates. It can date badly. Whereas, when you actually make the stuff, I think there’s something about that that is a little bit more ageless.
It was totally like living out a childhood dream. Being on those sets and being surrounded by those people – talking to Anthony Daniels, seeing him getting suited up, and Peter Mayhew putting on the suit again – that was incredible.

Isaac also discussed the tone of the film, trying to capture that Han Solo style, and how the spectacle is secondary to the emotional experience:

If you watch Harrison Ford in [the originals], he doesn’t give a f***, you know? [Laughs] He’s just being a real person. He’s funny. You can even hear little ad-libs and things like that… [It's similar on this film]. There’s less of a formality, I think. I think the biggest thing, the most important part of the story, is the emotional aspect of it. I think that’s what most of us were keyed into: ‘What is the emotion of the thing?’ The spectacle is secondary to that.

As for that crazy new lightsaber from the end of the trailer—Isaac couldn’t elaborate on who it belongs to, but he seems just as excited as we are about it:

I think it’s amazing. It’s so cool… If Darth Vader had one of those, he wouldn’t have lost his hand!

We couldn’t agree more. But our biggest takeaway from the interview with Isaac is the reassurance that director J.J. Abrams and the production team spent a lot of time and energy making sure that ‘The Force Awakens’ would be more in keeping with the original trilogy, relying more on practical over digital.

‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ hits theaters on December 18, 2015.