Feb 17, 2017 08:57 AM EST By Donna Mills, UniversityHerald Reporter

"Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi" won't be released in theaters until later this year. Spoilers and plot leaks, however, have already made their way online. One plot leak involved Finn's (John Boyega) friendship with Tom Hardy's character.

According to the leak, there is going to be a scene where Finn will infiltrate a new First Order ship. He and an old stormtrooper friend portrayed by Hardy will converse in a hallway. That conversation will lead to Hardy's character slapping Finn's butt playfully, Making Star Wars claimed.

It turns out that Hardy's character knows Finn from his FN-2187 days, and he is unaware of what happened at the Starkiller Base. It also seems that Hardy's character believes Finn, who's wearing a First Order officer's uniform, to be an undercover agent.

However, it's also possible that the stormtrooper is congratulating Finn on his promotion in the First Order (hence the butt slap) and not because he's a Resistance infiltrator. It's funny that Hardy's character has no qualms over teasing a superior, but stormtroopers in the "Star Wars" universe are usually dim-witted.

The ship that Finn will be in is a huge and dark First Order Super Star Destroyer that wasn't seen in previous "Star Wars" installments. The spaceship's appearance is a "triangle-shaped wedge."

The ship may also be the one that Finn and Kelly Marie Tran's character will destroy using explosives. There are speculations that the ship will orbit a planet that will serve as the new command center of the First Order after the Starkiller Base's demise.

A special bond was teased between Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) via the characters' biography pages on the official StarWars.com website. Both biographies now include the words "mysterious connection" and "strange connection" with each other, which may have confirmed that theory claiming that they are both Skywalkers.

Mark Hamill may have teased to The Hollywood Reporter that his character will die in the movie, making Rey as the last Jedi teased in the title. But the actor also hinted on Twitter that he will appear in "Episode XI." It remains to be seen which of these is true.

The first trailer for "Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi" is expected to debut a panel event in April. Director Rian Johnson and Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy will reportedly attend the panel that will happen in Orlando, Florida on April 13 to 16, according to The Independent.

These are all speculations at this point, though. The movie is slated for a Dec. 18, 2017 release date. What are you most excited about in the film? Tell us below!

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