“Star Wars: The Last Jedi” director Rian Johnson reportedly batted off a legion of Russian bots who launched a campaign pleading to save the life of a ruthless military general named General Hux.
The revelation was documented in a behind-the-scenes film about the making of The Last Jedi that screened at the South By Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas on Tuesday. Johnson’s Twitter account flooded with #HuxLive hashtags early in the 2017 feature’s production, the Film School Rejects website reported.
“It’s amazing […]There’s a coordinated effort by these Russian accounts. Hundreds of them,” Johnson was cited as saying in the documentary that is slated for wide release this summer.
The #HuxLive hashtag has resurfaced in the past 24 hours with users ironically questioning whether their desire to keep General Hux alive meant they were “Russian bots.”
The franchise grossed over $16 million in Russia and post-Soviet countries since its mid-December 2017 release.
“Why the Russians bots love Hux is clear now — they are way into authoritarian regimes — but at the time, it appears to have been perplexing for Johnson and his collaborators,” the website reported.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
![](["https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/DHPFo3ckg8g\/maxresdefault.jpg","https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/DHPFo3ckg8g\/hqdefault.jpg","https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/DHPFo3ckg8g\/default.jpg","https:\/\/static.themoscowtimes.com\/img\/article_video.jpg"])
