While huge crowds are lining up outside movie theatres to watch Star Wars: The Last Jedi this weekend, some diehard fans will be gathering in Langley as a massive collection of Star Wars memorabilia is set to be auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Able Auctions will be selling hundreds of vintage action figures, comic books, statues and other items related to the Star Wars movie franchise. Larger items include replica blasters, lightsabers, a bust of Darth Vader and a life-sized R2D2.
According to Colin Hole of Able Auctions, the owner of the massive collection decided it was time to take it out of a storage unit and spread it around the universe.
WATCH: Star Wars auction in Langley
“He figured it’s better off to get it out there, sell it off, get the money and have other people that have space or want to enjoy it to actually enjoy it rather than sitting up in a warehouse being boxed up for years,” he said.
The auction features several Star Wars action figures still sealed in their original packaging, which greatly increases their value. An unopened Jawa figure from the 1970s can fetch as much as $16,000, Hole said.
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“You get a toy and you always want to open it up. That’s the beauty of them. That’s what makes the ones that are still packaged worth so much money,” Hole said.
Other higher-end items include a blaster signed by the late Carrie Fisher and a lightsaber autographed by Hayden Christensen.
Less likely to fetch a huge sum are items connected to much-maligned character Jar Jar Binks.
The auction kicked off at 9:30 a.m. at Able Auctions’ Langley warehouse at 19757 92A Ave.
The auction comes a day after Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the new film in the beloved space saga, opened in theatres. The film is on track to ring up around $200 million at domestic theatres over the weekend, distributor Walt Disney Co. said on Friday.
— With files from Ted Field and Reuters
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