ORLANDO, FL - APRIL 13: Harrison Ford, Kathleen Kennedy, George Lucas, Billie Lourd and Mark Hamill attend the 40 YEARS OF STAR WARS PANEL during the 2017 STAR WARS CELEBRATION at Orange County Convention Center on April 13, 2017 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Gerardo Mora/Getty Images for Disney)

Star Wars Celebration Orlando officially began this morning with a tribute to the Saga’s 40th anniversary. Warwick Davis played host to a panel that featured surprise appearances from the Maker, George Lucas, along with Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, Star Wars Rebels executive producer Dave Filoni, and franchise stars Hayden Christensen, Ian McDiarmid, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, Billy Dee Williams and Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford.

And of course, no one could forget the stars who were not there, Kenny Baker (R2D2) and the princess, Carrie Fisher. Billie Lourd, Fisher’s daughter, was there to honor her mother, as was legendary composer John Williams, who conducted the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra while they played “Leia’s Theme.”

You can see photos from the panel above, as well as Lucasfilm’s touching video tribute to Carrie Fisher below.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Avatar photoSean Gerber (@MrSeanGerber) is the Executive Editor of Superhero News. When he's not writing about superheroes and genre entertainment, you can see him talk about them as the host of the Superhero News Show on YouTube and listen to him on the Marvel Studios News podcast.