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Forget Tom Cruise, The Real Star Wars Surprise We Need To Talk About With Starfighter

January 14, 2026 5 min read views
Forget Tom Cruise, The Real Star Wars Surprise We Need To Talk About With Starfighter
Forget Tom Cruise, The Real Star Wars Surprise We Need To Talk About With Starfighter Tom Cruise And Star Wars Lightsabers In Background Custom 4 By  Kevin Erdmann Published 14 minutes ago Since 2019, Kevin Erdmann has been one of Screen Rant's Senior Staff Writers, covering all kinds of Superhero and Star Wars media with Easter egg breakdowns, theory pieces, breaking news, and more. A huge Star Wars & MCU fan, Kevin also loves Batman (because he's Batman), but could talk for hours about why Nightwing is DC's greatest hero.  With 8 years of total experience covering entertainment and pop culture, Kevin has gotten the chance to interview top creatives and talent, and has also attended major media events like Disney's D23 convention. Majoring in Cinema Studies with a minor in Comics and Cartoon Studies from the UofO, Kevin lives in Oregon with his wonderful wife, adorable dog, and sinister cat who is no doubt currently plotting his demise. Sign in to your ScreenRant account Add Us On Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

A new reveal about Star Wars: Starfighter is so much bigger than Tom Cruise. Following an interview with Starfighter's director Shawn Levy, we now know something huge about the plot of the upcoming Star Wars movie that we definitely didn't know before.

Yes, Tom Cruise helped film a scene for Shawn Levy, and yes, that’s undeniably cool for the future Star Wars movie. However, the particular Starfighter scene in question is a pretty big deal, too.

Tom Cruise Helped Film A Scene For Star Wars: Starfighter

Ryan Gosling and Flynn Gray in Star Wars Starfighter Ryan Gosling and Flynn Gray in Star Wars Starfighter

In a recent interview with *The New York Times*, Shawn Levy revealed that Tom Cruise recently visited the set of Star Wars: Starfighter and even helped film part of a scene. “Now when you see the movie,” Levy said, “you’ll know that part of it was shot by Tom. I mean, how cool is that?”

Levy also noted that several A-listers dropped by the production, saying, “Last week Steven Spielberg was here. And now Tom Cruise is wielding a camera, ruining his very nice shoes.” All in all, it’s a fun behind-the-scenes anecdote to generate more hype for the upcoming Star Wars movie set five years after Disney's sequel trilogy, exploring brand-new territory for the galaxy far, far away.

However, the New York Times article also confirmed that the scene in question was set in the water, involved lightsabers, and also implied that both Amy Adams and Mia Goth's characters are Force-sensitive. That's HUGE.

Lightsabers in Starfighter Is Actually A Pretty Big Deal

Rey Skywalker Lightsaber Clash Featured Image

Thanks to this story about Tom Cruise's brief involvement behind the camera, it's now been confirmed that Starfighter is set to include lightsabers, something we didn't know beforehand. Until now, there was no indication that the iconic Star Wars weapons would appear in this story set five years after The Rise of Skywalker.

Naturally, this immediately raises some huge canon questions considering Starfighter's place in the Star Wars timeline. Who’s wielding these lightsabers? Presumably, it's Adams and Goth, but who are their characters exactly? Are remnants of the Sith Eternal still active? Are we seeing early members of Rey’s New Jedi Order?

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There’s also the exciting possibility that Starfighter will be introducing entirely new Force-wielding factions, rather than being tied to the Jedi or Sith of the past. Although Cruise helping film a scene is fun, this lightsaber confirmation feels like it's the much bigger story for the Star Wars franchise overall.

Star Wars: Starfighter is set to release in theaters on May 28th, 2027

Star Wars Starfighter logo poster

Star Wars: Starfighter

Like Follow Followed Fantasy Action Sci-Fi Release Date May 28, 2027 Director Shawn Levy Writers Jonathan Tropper, George Lucas

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Matt Smith In The UK premiere of Sky series 'House of the Dragon' Matt Smith
  • Cast Placeholder Image Flynn Gray
  • Headshot Of Amy Adams In The BAFTA British Academy Film Awards 2019 Amy Adams

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