First Close Up Look At Star Wars 7's R2-D2

It’s been over 30 years since ‘Return of the Jedi’ and poor R2-D2 is looking a bit worse for wear in these new, behind-the-scenes images from the ‘Star Wars 7’ wrap party.

Everyone’s favourite astromech was spotted at the party in photos from lead actor John Boyega’s Instagram account, but he’s definitely looking a lot tattier than we’re used to.

But does this mean a grubbier aesthetic for the galaxy far, far away?

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R2-D2 was the first official cast member to join the upcoming ‘Star Wars’ sequel and while we’ve seen him appear in numerous promotional photos, we’ve still yet to see a real good close up of the troublesome droid. That is, until now.

Unfortunately, Boyega’s image still leaves a lot to be desired. And while R2-D2 clearly looks rather dashing in a scarf, we still don’t get a real close-up of the mech himself.

Thankfully, the folks at The RPF were able to get their hands on some behind-the-scenes images of the ‘Star Wars VII’ R2-D2 and while this is reported to be a film-used droid, it seems that the last 30 years have started to take their toll.

Obviously, we can see Artoo in much more detail here and while it certainly doesn’t give away any plot details, these images do give us an insight into the aesthetic of the upcoming ‘Star Wars’ sequel. And maybe even a hint that R2-D2 hasn’t exactly been taking things easy since ‘Return of the Jedi’.

He’s certainly not as clean-looking as the R2-D2 of the original trilogy and the ultra-modern, clean lines of the original are now replaced with a battered chassis and grubby-looking panels.

It’s certainly evident that R2-D2 is no longer the brand-new droid that we see in ‘A New Hope’ and has become grubby and out-of-date with age. But while the years haven’t been kind to the poor little astromech, perhaps this all part of Abrams’ ‘Star Wars 7’ aesthetic.

We’ve already seen plenty of official images that show the tattered marketplaces of (presumably) Tatooine and even a ‘Star Wars VII’ X-Wing that doesn’t exactly look like a brand-new starship. Of course, that’s all part of the charm of the original ‘Star Wars’ trilogy – trading the sleek futuristic sci-fi vision for a more down-to-earth approach.

And while I can’t help feeling for poor Artoo, this grubby-looking droid promises a rather excellent callback to the rough-and-ready aesthetic of the original trilogy.

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Picture Credit: Instagram/The RPF