Though early reports indicated that Disney would not unveil any new footage from J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the Star Wars reel shown at Comic-Con is in fact a three-minute and 42 seconds treasure trove of wonderful behind-the-scenes shots that capture the enthusiasm of the participants on both sides of the camera and the “look” of what appears to be a very striking film .  The reel begins with a series of striking still photographs and then springs to life with a series of revealing looks at the making of the film, which like the first (chronological) Star Wars film, Episode IV, begins in the desert.

In addition to shots of director J.J. Abrams and his crew at work, The Force Awakens Comic-Con promo provides new shots of Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Peter Maydew (Chewbacca), Daisy Ridley (Rey), and John Boyega (Finn), though perhaps the reel’s biggest reveal is the presence of Simon Pegg, who appears to be working on the film as some sort of alien extra.  Pegg, who comments that his “life is now complete,” of course worked with Abrams’ on the reboot of Star Trek, so it turns out that Abrams is not the only link between the two classic science fiction franchises.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is set to release nationwide on December 18.