- Click to share on Facebook (Opens in a new window)
- Click to share on Twitter (Opens in a new window)
- Click here to share on LinkedIn (Opens in a new window)
- Click to email a friend (Opens in a new window)
(CNN) - "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker," the long-awaited conclusion of the Skywalker saga, could trigger attacks on photosensitive people, Walt Disney Studios warned.
The company issued a joint statement with the Epilepsy Foundation warning viewers that the film contains "several sequences with images and sustained flashing lights" that could affect people with photosensitive epilepsy, the text reads.
Disney suggested posting ads in theaters to warn viewers about the risk, Variety reported.
The company did not give details on how the effects are used or in which scenes they appear. The company has been silent about the plot of the film.
People with photosensitive epilepsy can still watch the movie
Flashing lights at certain intensities and certain patterns can trigger seizures in approximately 3% of people with epilepsy, according to the Epilepsy Foundation. Anything, from the intermittent strobe of a fire alarm to the flickering computer monitors, can cause attacks on photosensitive people.
Photosensitive epilepsy turns out to be more common in young people, says the foundation, and occurs less as people with epilepsy get older.
Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases and affects about 50 million people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization.
The warning does not mean that lovers of “Star Wars” with epilepsy cannot discover how Rey, Kylo Ren and company conclude the series. The Epilepsy Foundation recommends asking a friend to watch the movie first and take that friend to watch the movie again to warn about the scenes before they happen.
It also helps if that friend knows the first aid for seizures: stay with the person, keep them safe and away from objects that could harm them and put the person on their side if they are not conscious.
It's not the first time
Similar warnings accompanied Disney's "Incredibles II", which contained a sequence of flashing lights that could also have caused seizures in people with photosensitive epilepsy. Notices were posted in theaters for that premiere after, on Twitter, several people shared their concerns.
And in 1997, the flashing lights of the popular television cartoon "Pokemon" were related to more than 600 cases of seizures, vomiting, irritated eyes and other symptoms among children in Japan.
Additional report by Jacqueline Howard of CNN
Star wars
