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New hero Rey makes Monopoly debut as Star Wars storms NY Toy Fair

After a much-publicized absence from merchandise, the Star Wars heroine takes a leading role in everything from board games to Lego sets.

Mike Sorrentino headshot
Mike Sorrentino
2 min read
Rey will officially join Star Wars Monopoly in fall 2016.
Hasbro

Where's Rey? She's here now.

Following a notable omission from the first "The Force Awakens" Monopoly set, Hasbro unveiled the token that will represent the beloved Star Wars character at the New York Toy Fair this past weekend.

The toy company said in January that Rey was excluded to avoid giving away a key plot line in "The Force Awakens," which didn't hit theaters until a few months after the Monopoly set was released. The new token does away with that concern and shows Rey ready to battle with Luke Skywalker's long-lost blue lightsaber.

The new version of the board game is due out in fall 2016, with a retail price $25 (roughly £20 in the UK and AU$35 in Australia).

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Schylling's BeBot of Rey at the New York Toy Fair.

Mike Sorrentino/CNET

But the Rey Monopoly figure was just the tipping point. Rey was on display at several booths throughout the Jacob Javits Center in New York.

The character was featured prominently on a Funko doll, in plush toys, in upcoming "The Force Awakens" Lego sets, as a life-size Lego statue and even on a tin lithograph as part of Schylling's BeBots line.

One reason Rey's prominence was held back until now: Not all toy makers were even informed how big of a role her character would play.

The designs for BeBots of the new characters introduced in "The Force Awakens" began with limited information, said Justin Discoe, vice president of product development at Schylling, and Christopher Aja, a senior designer at the company. Like many manufacturers, they received a character photo without much additional context. From there, Aja would draw up a design for their BeBots figure that would have to be approved by Lucasfilm.

Star Wars toys awaken at the New York Toy Fair (pictures)

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"Most of these characters we didn't know who they were," Aja said.

All of the "The Force Awakens" figures in the BeBots line come in the same shape. Discoe added that Lucasfilm would provide additional photos or information to help complete the designs if needed.

While Schylling is launching this line with Star Wars, Discoe teased that the company plans to announce more franchises working with the BeBots line in the future. Schylling's smaller BeBots figures will cost $13 in the US (roughly £10, AU$20), with larger ones going for $20 (roughly £15, AU$30).