Disney has done a lot of intense work marketing its new animated Star Wars series, Star Wars Rebels. This week, the Disney Channel premiered a 44-minute special episode called Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion to kick off the series. The special did quite well on The Disney Channel, and now Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion is headed to ABC for an additional second showing. The network's airing of Spark of Rebellion will be extra special however, as it will come with a special bonus scene and a cameo from James Earl Jones.
That’s right, when Spark of Rebellion heads to ABC later this month, fans will be treated to an additional scene featuring none other than Darth Vader. And thanks to Jones’ involvement, the iconic character will get his original voice. On Thursday, executive producer Dave Filoni explained why the new scene has been added in.
“We wanted to do something special for the ABC broadcast. We’ve added a scene which gives audiences insight into the Inquisitor and includes a cameo by Darth Vader voiced by the distinguished actor James Earl Jones.”
The animated series takes place in the time between Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. A ragtag crew led by the soon-to-be powerful Jedi Ezra Bridger (Taylor Gray) and renegade Jedi Kanan Jarrus (Freddie Prinze, Jr.) are tasked with taking on threatening villains and saving the day. Their main threat will be the aforementioned Inquisitor (Jason Isaacs), who has been tasked by Darth Vader to rid the universe of all Jedi. The show is also notable because it is expected to be canon.
As I noted prior, Disney is really crushing the marketing with its Star Wars Rebels stuff. Due to big buzz and a built-in audience, the show got off to a killer start on October 3, pulling in more than 6.5 million total viewers, numbers that are high for The Disney Channel. Additionally, the network showed a boost of confidence in the series when it signed on for Season 2 before Season 1 even premiered. Star Wars Rebels will hit the schedule in its regular form on Monday, October 13 at 9 p.m. ET. Sixteen episodes are expected to be produced for Season 1.
A scene with added information and a Darth Vader cameo might inspire fans to rewatch Star Wars Rebels: Spark The Rebellion when it re-airs on ABC on October 26 at 9 p.m. ET. Even if it doesn’t, it’s still an added reason for new viewers to give the show a shot, without having to add Disney or Disney XD to their cable package in order to do so.
