Called Force Block, the extension first arrived on the Chrome Web Store at the end of 2015. Creator Matt Tyndall realized that he couldn’t escape spoilers related to the seventh episode, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, without shutting off his internet connection. To get around that possible mind-numbing disconnect, he proceeded to create a Chrome extension.
“Luckily, J.J. Abrams and Disney have kept the story buttoned up for us so far, giving us a unique chance of experiencing the movie like many did when A New Hope first premiered,” he said. “But once the film starts making its way into the hands of those outside the innermost circles, well …”
According to Tyndall, Force Block will analyze web pages using “smart pattern detection.” During the scan, the extension relies on a database of Star Wars terms and will flag the page if too many tagged terms reach a specific threshold. The page will go dark, save for one message stating that “the ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of spoilers.”
Once the warning appears, you have the option of continuing, and to prevent the extension from blocking the page in the future. Force Block experienced more than 100,000 downloads by the time Priceless Misc added support for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story in December 2016. Now it protects Star Wars fans against evil spoilers stemming from The Last Jedi, as well.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi hits theaters on Friday, December 15. The Resistance is still battling the New Order while Rey (Daisy Ridley) serves as Luke Skywalker’s (Mark Hamill) latest Padawan on the planet Ahch-To. The film supposedly tackles a lot of questions raised by The Force Awakens, but early reviews say the tone, action, and dramatic storytelling echoes the greatness of The Empire Strikes Back. Given the lackluster reception of the prequels and the A New Hope-style storyline in Episode VII, The Last Jedi appears to be the best post-Empire film to date.
But as Tyndall pointed out prior to The Force Awakens, many fans want a spoiler-free experience just like many of us observed when Star Wars originally hit theaters in 1977. That is where the Force Block extension comes in although no Star Wars movie will ever make the same impact as the original Episode IV film did 40 years ago.
Once The Last Jedi arrives and thoroughly dazzles your eyeballs, the Chrome extension can always be removed. Instructions for doing so can be found here.
