As the lights dimmed and the famous words “A long time ago in a galaxy far away” appeared on the screen, the crowd of Star Wars fans erupted in cheers at the NCG Trillium in Grand Blanc for the premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. As people started to fill in the theater 45 minutes early to the 8:45 p.m. show, many stopped along the way to meet with some Star Wars fans dressed head to toe in Cosplay gear in the lobby of the theater.

“Even though it was just a robot, I’d have to say the R2D2 was my favorite,” junior Nicholas Rose said. “The Kylo Ren [a new character] costume was also really cool. The guy even had his lightsaber with the lasers coming out the sides of the handles.”

Star Wars: The Force Awakens shattered box office records for preview night while reeling in $57M on Thursday, Dec 17. The previous record was $43.7 million set by Harry Potter: Deathly Hallows Part 2 in 2011. This was anticipated by many, as theaters were selling out ever since the movie tickets went on sale online. Junior Abby Quesnelle’s family had planned on seeing the movie sometime before the holidays. However, at the last minute they made a decision to go on opening night.

“My dad decided during the day to look on the Trillium’s website, and was shocked to see that tickets were still available for the opening night show.” Quesnelle said. “Overall, I really loved the film, and I would definitely consider myself a Star Wars fan.”

Overall, the buzz surrounding Star Wars: The Force Unleashed was matched by the excitement and amount of people packed in for the premiere. The premiere brought in many different people, kids and grown adults, all with the common interest of being some of the first people to see the new movie. As once said by many Star Wars characters, including former Jedi Obi Wan Kenobi, “May the force be with you.”