Disney Plus has just released a new trailer for its upcoming Willow sequel series, and it's got a decidedly different vibe than what some viewers might be expecting. With a bit more of a focus on humor this time around, it looks as though this trailer wants to bring in a whole new crowd that may not have checked out the series otherwise.
The first Willow trailer saw star Warwick Davis return to his classic role from the 1998 dark fantasy film of the same name, and it draped the whole affair with a shroud of mystery and drama. But this time around, more characters get the spotlight while Davis' Willow himself has plenty to say along with the rest. It's likely that the Disney Plus series itself will have a healthy mix of both intense drama and moments of levity like those seen here, and the previous trailer (released alongside the announcement of Christian Slater as a new Willow cast member) seems to indicate as much. But the jokes are front and center here.
The Willow trailer makes its intentions immediately clear with a shockingly contemporary backing track and some cute banter. Willow's utterance of, "evil is coming to destroy us all," is quickly answered with a deadpan, "well, that can't be good." Similar moments are sprinkled throughout, though in a way that seems to be more edited for the trailer's sake rather than accurately depicting the humor as it will appear in the series itself. But it still offers some indication of the overall premise. Of course, there's also plenty of magic in there as well.
The original Willow saw Davis' titular character as an unassuming farmer with magical aspirations who found himself as the protector of the infant princess Elora. After she was sent away to protect her from an evil sorceress, Willow found her and set out to return her to her family. Now, many years later, this new series appears to feature Willow and a new team of fellow heroes setting out to find a now-grown Elora, who has gone missing. It's unclear just how deep this story will go, but the original film's director Ron Howard has said that the Willow series won't rely on nostalgia, so that's certainly a helpful point.
The Willow series stars Erin Kellyman (Falcon and the Winter Soldier), Tony Revolori (Spider-Man: Homecoming), Ellie Bamber (Nocturnal Animals), Amar Chadha-Patel (Dashcam), and Ruby Cruz (Mare of Easttown) as Willow's new band of adventurers. Meanwhile, Joanne Whalley, Kevin Pollak, and Rick Overton from the original film will return to their original roles as Sorsha, Rool, and Franjean respectively. Solo: A Star Wars Story writer Jonathan Kasdan is developing the series, while Grammy-winning composer James Newton Howard takes on the soundtrack.
Some fans might be a bit wary about this trailer's focus on humor and quippy dialogue. But upon viewing the 1998 original film once again, it was actually surprisingly silly in many areas as well, which shouldn't be surprising from the director who made The Grinch. So perhaps this look at the upcoming series is more faithful than expected. Either way, it's good to see Davis doing some real magic again.
Willow will premiere on Disney Plus starting November 30th.
Source: Lucasfilm/YouTube