5 things we learned about upcoming movies from this year's Star Wars Celebration

FANS of the intergalactic saga were waiting for news from London, UK, July 15 to 17, when the British city hosted this year's Star Wars Celebration convention.

With all communications under strict control, fans eagerly awaiting news on the franchise's upcoming instalment weren't treated to as many revelations as they might have hoped.

Still, here are five things we did learn about the next "Star Wars" episodes and their spin-offs.

"Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" gets a poster

The first spin-off from the Star Wars franchise now has its first movie poster, although it's still provisional. The poster shows a paradise setting – with a beach lined with palm trees and turquoise waters – as the backdrop for a battle between humans and their droids and an army of Stormtroopers. In the sky, X-wings can be seen circling and a translucent Death Star shows its menacing presence. A few new images from the film were also unveiled in a video mixing scenes from the first trailer and behind the scenes footage:

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - Celebration Reel

Darth Vader is definitely back

Eleven years after "Revenge of the Sith," the Sith Lord is set to return to the saga via the "Rogue One" spin-off. Announced back in June, Darth Vader's return has been confirmed by a teaser unveiled at this year's Star Wars Celebration. Darth Vader makes a very brief appearance right at the end of the video. Fans immediately recognised his legendary breathing before even seeing him onscreen. Unfortunately the teaser isn't available online for the time being.

Episode VIII will directly follow "The Force Awakens"

For the first time in the history of the saga, the next episode will pick up the story directly after the previous instalment. With no omissions or jumps forward in time, Rian Johnson's movie – which has just finished filming – will pick up exactly where the J.J. Abrams film left off – in other words, when Rey and Luke Skywalker meet.

Alden Ehrenreich is the new Han Solo

The 26-year-old American actor is set to play the legendary smuggler – previously portrayed by Harrison Ford – in a spin-off about his younger years and early encounters with the Rebel Alliance. Alden Ehrenreich, seen recently in the Coen brothers' "Hail, Caesar!," was officially introduced at Star Wars Celebration. The Han Solo movie is due to start filming in January or early February 2017, directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller ("The Lego Movie," "21 Jump Street"), and is slated for release in May 2018.

More in store for 2017

In the end, there were very few revelations from the London edition of Star Was Celebration. There was hardly any new information on Episode VIII, for example, which still has no title or teaser. Next year's Star Wars Celebration in Orlando, USA, should make up for things April 13 to 16, 2017. As well as being held a few months before the release of Episode VIII, the 2017 edition is also likely to celebrate the saga's 40th anniversary.