Apple’s Jony Ive gave J.J. Abrams ‘very specific’ input on lightsaber designs

The new lightsaber that appeared in the trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens provoked some strong reactions last year, but how much more would people care if it transpires that Apple’s Jony Ive had a hand in its creation? In an extensive profile on the superstar British designer for the New Yorker, journalist Ian Parker describes how Ive and crossed paths with Star Wars director J.J. Abrams in what might be one of the greatest nerd-crossovers of all time:

“Ive once sat next to J. J. Abrams at a boozy dinner party in New York, and made what Abrams recalled as “very specific” suggestions about the design of lightsabres. Abrams told me that “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” would reflect those thoughts, but he wouldn’t say how.”