There’s a huge mass of Star Wars geeks out there (myself included) watching every move Disney and J.J Abrams make as a new crop of Star Wars releases draws ever closer. If there’s one thing guaranteed to get the attention of these Star Wars fans, it’s a peek at what Abrams is working on. And if there’s one thing guaranteed to get pop culture geeks in general in a froth, it’s a mash-up between franchises. J.J. Abrams just managed both in one shot with his HUNKA JUNK YouTube clip of the new Millennium Falcon from his forthcoming Star Wars film—with a very unexpected Easter egg.

When I was growing up, Star Wars was the movie franchise, the epic blockbusters that drove the special effects industry and launched countless lines of toys and collectibles.

   

                                                                       

It got even cooler once Lego licensed Star Wars and started offering detailed models based on the original trilogy, the prequels and the animated TV series. When I had kids, I finally had the excuse to begin collecting these Lego sets.  

My kids reciprocated and several Father’s Day gifts included a Lego Millennium Falcon (like this one) and a 1100-odd piece General Grievous (as far as I’m concerned the coolest part of the 1999 Star Wars prequel Revenge of the Sith) that has graced my desk for the past several years. In fact, he has been the focus of multiple articles in the past, including several in Wired touching on the controversial subject of gluing Lego. Super glue —or “Kragle”— isn’t just the secret weapon in The Lego Movie, it was a necessary evil for General Grievous after he lost several encounters with my cats.

Four light sabres or not, the General would always come out on the losing end and I got tired of crawling under my desk looking for pieces.

Most of the Star Wars Lego sets migrated to the playroom, where they mixed with other Lego kits resulting in hybrid creations. Always one of the best things about Lego. So you’d end up with Stormtrooper minifigs hanging out in Hogwarts or Lego Darth Vader driving around in a highly modified Lego Batmobile.

Which brings us to HUNKA JUNK. 

J.J. Abrams, the director of the next instalment in the Star Wars franchise (Episode VII) has a bit of a rivalry going with Zack Snyder, director of the forthcoming Batman v Superman movie. As a treat to Star Wars fans who are anxiously awaiting any glimpse of the vehicles from the Star Wars universe, Abrams posted HUNKA JUNK on YouTube, showing the iconic Millennium Falcon. 

Watch the clip closely, though, and you’ll see something unexpected attached to the ship…

Yup, that’s clearly Batman’s ride attached to Hans Solo’s.

Let the geek freakout begin…   

Brad Moon
Editor Computing solutions
I’m a long-time electronics and gadget geek who’s been fortunate enough to enjoy a career that lets me indulge this interest. I have been writing about technology for several decades for a wide range of outlets including Wired, Gizmodo, Lifehacker, MSN, About.com, Kiplinger, and GeekDad. I’m in my 10th year as a senior contributor for Forbes with a focus on reviewing music-related tech, Apple gear, battery power stations and other consumer electronics. My day job is with the Malware Research Center at AI-native cybersecurity pioneer CrowdStrike.