A new look at Rogue One–The Beastie Boys’ Sabotage makes everything better

By now everyone who has ever been a Star Wars fan must be excited for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Other than its odd title (why not just go with Rogue One?), last week’s trailer cinched it. Finally, an exciting Star Wars story is on our way steeped in that gritty detail and aura that made all our jaws drop back for the first time back in 1977. Check out that trailer if you missed it last week here at borg.com.

Then we caught wind of another trailer Monday. We won’t trick you into thinking it’s a Lucasfilm trailer. It’s not. But it plays into all sorts of pop culture fun, especially if you’re a Star Trek fan and you’re a fan of J.J. Abrams’ direction of the first two Star Trek reboot films and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. If you don’t know it already, Abrams is a fan of The Beastie Boys, and he used the band’s song “Sabotage” to show just how cocky and cool his young Jim Kirk was in Star Trek (2009).

Abrams even used “Sabotage” as the background music for his first trailer for Star Trek Beyond, released near the premiere of Star Trek: The Force Awakens back in December 2015. Here is that trailer if you missed it:

We’ll stop for a second for anyone who hasn’t seen Star Trek Beyond, this summer’s biggest blockbuster so far. Spoilers ahead, so consider yourself warned. But if you choose to read on be prepared for what we think is one of the best fan-edited trailers on the Web.

Let’s put it this way–the climax of Star Trek Beyond practically hinges on The Beastie Boys’ song, and it explained why the marketing team for Star Trek Beyond used it in the trailer. At the end of the day it’s hard to deny how well it was included in the story as its own story device. It really propelled the rollercoaster ride to its exciting end.

So a clever fan created the following edit of the Rogue One trailer. Check it out and see if you don’t agree, it shows how cocky and cool Rogue One’s new heroine Jyn Erso is–and may prove to you The Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage” makes everything even better:

Here is Abrams’ original use of “Sabotage” in the Riverside, Iowa, sequence in Star Trek (2009):

Good stuff. A pretty solid tribute to the band by Abrams. And a great fan edit to get us all excited for Rogue One.

You’ll also see across the Web news of an international trailer which pieces mostly elements we’ve seen before together in a slightly different way. Check out that version here: