Wing Commander Movie Night: Firefox (June 16, 2025)

Bandit LOAF

Bandit LOAF

Long Live the Confederation!



The official Wing Commander movie club is BACK!... and for the record, we did find Showgirls pretty fascinating. But now we're back to movies that have been credited with inspiring Wing Commander and this week's film is a big one, at least visually: it's Firefox (1982). The legendary Clint Eastwood directs and stars in a high tech thriller from the height of the cold war. It's Eastwood vs. the Soviet Union in a race to capture a high tech airplane that should look pretty familiar to veterans of the Vega Campaign. You can join us this Friday via Discord to watch along.


Firefox's influence on Wing Commander isn't a mystery… it's right there in the name! Firefox's titular MiG-31 Firefox super-jet is the very clear inspiration for Wing Commander's own F-44 Rapier II design. The Rapier becomes 'less' Firefox in each iteration but you can still see the inspiration all the way through some of the early concepts for the movie. Here's a quick visual history of the Rapier:





1990​





1991​





1994​





1998​





1999​





2007​

Where can I find a copy of the movie for the watch party?

Firefox is available to download on the Internet Archive. It is available for rent or purchase on the standard streaming services. If you would like a physical copy, the movie was released on BluRay in 2011 and remains in print around the world. If you are not able to locate a copy please stop by the Discord and ping a CIC staff member before Friday's showing.

How do we watch the movie together?

It's pretty low tech! Simply join the Wing Commander CIC Discord on Friday and we will be chatting (in text) along with the film in the main channel. Everyone who wants to join in should bring their own copy and we will count down to play them together at 10 PM EST. Everyone is welcome and we encourage you to join in the conversation; sharing your thoughts helps make the experience better for everyone!

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Original update published on June 16, 2025
 
I have to admit after reading this post I bought the movie (on Blu-Ray). Looks interesting even though I probably can't make the movie night.
 
Based on the Craig Thomas novel; it's arguably the first techno-thriller and a pretty good read in its own right. There's a book sequel called Firefox Down as well. Both are now available in new editions after years out of print.
 
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