Star Wars: The Force Awakens revealed on Monday Night Football as ticket websites crash due to high demand

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Two minute trailer for latest installment aired in US during game between New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles
Clip is the final teaser for film that will be released on December 18, when it is expected to break box office records
Princess Leia featured for first time as trailer reveals more details about the plot and its new characters
Tickets were not scheduled to go on sale until the trailer aired at halftime, but websites such as Fandango and Movietickets.com crashed when sales opened up early
See the latest news and updates on Star Wars: The Force Awakens at www.dailymail.co.uk/starwars

By Christopher Brennan For Dailymail.com and Reuters

Published: 21:20 EST, 19 October 2015 | Updated: 16:17 EST, 20 October 2015

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The final trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens aired on Monday night, hinting heavily at heartbreak and sorrow for our heroes in a galaxy far, far away, as anticipation for the seventh installment of the multi-billion-dollar franchise reached feverish levels.

The two-minute clip, which aired in the US during NFL’s Monday Night Football, also gave viewers their first glimpse in 32 years of Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia, who is seen embracing love interest, Han Solo, played by Harrison Ford as tears appear to well in her eyes.

And having wowed fans of the sci-fi series back in April with a teaser featuring Han Solo and his Wookie sidekick Chewbacca, this final trailer revealed the two are back in trouble, as always, holding their hands above their heads, in a scene reminiscent of their many tight spots in the original three groundbreaking movies.

Fans of the series were also treated to the ominous voice of chief villain, Kylo Ren, played by Adam Driver, as he appeared to address the burnt-out helmet of Darth Vader, saying enigmatically, 'I will finish what you started'.

Showdown: A new trailer for the highly anticipated Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released on Monday night and showed fans this showdown between Kylo Ren, played by Adam Driver holding his now infamous red crossguard lightsaber and former stormtrooper, Finn, played by John Boyega holding what is believed to be Anakin Skywalker's blue lightsaber

Grief: Princess Leia, played by Carrie Fisher, was seen reprising her role for the first time in 32 years for only a brief second in the trailer as she was being consoled by Han Solo, played by Harrison Ford

Ominous: The helmet of Darth Vader, the villain from the original trilogy of movies, was seen in the most recent trailer. The half-human, half-robot character was last seen being burned in a funeral pyre by Luke Skywalker in 1983's Return of the Jedi

It's back! The full trailer also featured new images of Han Solo's Millennium Falcon, which was a mainstay of the first Star Wars trilogy

Chae: The spaceship can also be seen battling an Imperial TIE fighter through canyons on a desert planet

Following on from the release of the film's official poster, the trailer also revealed what could possibly be the new Death Star or Starkiller Base, which will presumably feature very heavily in the new installment when it hits theaters on December 18.

Other new characters who got more screen time following prior teaser promotions were Daisy Ridley's Rey, who appears to play a scrap salvager, and John Boyega's Finn, who is a former stormtrooper.

Another tantalizing reveal during the trailer was Lupita N'yongo's new, undisclosed character, who voiced-over some of the soul searching opening and closing lines of the clip.

However, one major absence from the two-minute trailer was Mark Hamill's Luke Skywalker, who although credited to appear in the new film, has not been seen in any of the promotional material for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

And eagle-eyed viewers of the trailer took to Twitter to speculate about the fate of fan-favorite Chewbacca, after a split second scene which appeared to show Daisy Ridley crying over a body who is wearing the Wookie's distinctive metallic ammo belt.

Previous trailers have prompted widespread speculation about what will happen in the seventh Star Wars, which is being kept under wraps by the studio.

The movie's second trailer, released in April, has accumulated more than 64million views on YouTube and offered viewers the first glimpse of Ford resuming his role as Solo, saying to his erstwhile sidekick, 'Chewie, we're home'.

Frightening: Kylo Ren is a member of of a dark side cult that idolizes Darth Vader is seen with what is believed to be other devotees to his evil following

Screen glare: 'I will finish what you started,' Ren says, presumably referencing Darth Vader as he stares out from the bridge of a star destroyer onto what is possibly the new Death Star or Starkiller firing. The film is also thought to feature a second villain named Captain Phasma, played by Gwendoline Christie

Copycat: Like Vader, Ren is seen wearing a helmet that masks his face. The villain is played by Adam Driver, most famous for his appearances on HBO's Girls

A battalion of stormtroopers stand in formation before an unknown leader on stage in this sinister scene from the film

Could this be Luke? Although Luke Skywalker does not appear in the trailer or poster, this may be his metal hand reaching out to R2D2. He famously lost a hand in the finale of the Empire Strikes Back

The new trailer for the film set roughly 30 years after the end of Return of the Jedi referenced the old films, with Solo explaining to younger compatriots who ask if 'those stories about what happened' are true.

'It's true all of it,' Solo replies. 'The dark side, the Jedi, they're real'.

The new trailer shows Finn flying an Imperial TIE Fighter before crash-landing, though in other snippets he is holding the blue lightsaber of a Jedi - which is believed to be the lightsaber gifted to Luke Skywalker by Obi-Wan Kenobi in 1977's Star Wars: A New Hope, which originally belonged to his father Anakin, before he turned to the dark side and became Darth Vader.

At one point in the clip viewers see that Finn faces off against Ren, whose three-bladed lightsaber intrigued fans in the first trailer last November.

Director JJ Abrams told Entertainment Weekly earlier that Ren assumed his named as part of the Knights of Ren, and is also thought to be connected to a remnant of the evil galactic Empire seen in the original movies.

Rising star Oscar Isaac's character Poe Dameron, was also seen in a rebel pilot's jumpsuit, and at one point was seen screaming as the voiceover referenced the dark side.

One of the new protagonists, Rey, is pictured on some desolate sand dunes next to a droid which rolls across the terrain

Friend or foe? Finn (left), a new character played by John Boyega, and Poe Dameron (right), played by Oscar Isaac, are expected to play a prominent role in the famous sci fi franchise's newest iteration

Newcomer: Finn, played by John Boyega (pictured), is seen wielding a lightsaber at one point, while in another, he is seen pulling off a stormtrooper outfit

Action: Boyega and the character Rey, played by relative newcomer Daisy Ridley, appear to be two of the film's main protagonists

Intrigue: Rey, played by Daisy Ridley, is a new character who has been repeatedly seen on a desert planet Jakku. The poster for the latest movie shows her carrying a large metal staff

Return: Harrison Ford reprises his role as Han Solo in the film, which is hugely anticipated and expected to bring in a record opening

Why always us? Solo and his Wookie sidekick Chewbacca were the highlight of a trailer released in April. Above right, they are seen putting their hands up in the most recent teaser, which appears similar to a scene from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (left)

Gotcha! A Rebel Alliance X-Wing destroys another plane during a dogfight above a planet featuring both land and sea

While the trailer did not satisfy all of fans' curiosity, it accompanied their first opportunity to buy pre-sale tickets for the movie.

Fans' eagerness for more of their favorite franchise has already led to record pre-sales for tickets in the UK, with the US likely to follow.

Though tickets were supposed to be available after the trailer aired, some were able to purchase beforehand on websites such as Fandango.com.

The ticket website crashed and had a 'technical difficulties' error message because of massive demand, though some were able to get tickets after several attempts.

Fandango said Tuesday that 'traffic surged to seven times its typical peak levels, propelling Fandango’s advance sales for “Star Wars” to a record-setting first day of pre-sales'.

The company said that Star Wars had sold eight times as many tickets in the first day as the previous record holder, 2012's The Hunger Games.

Movietickets.com crashed before coming back up and AMC's site also briefly collapsed under heavy traffic.

'It's been our busiest day ever for online bookings in the UK,' British cinema chain Odeon said in a statement, acknowledging that some customers experienced booking delays when its website crashed.

Loss of an old friend? Some fans have speculated that this shot of Rey is her mourning over the hairy body of Solo's Wookie companion Chewbacca

Fire: Stormtroopers, the white-suited soldiers of the Empire who are famed among Star Wars fans for their terrible aim, battle in ruins during the latest clip

Evocative: The Empire's TIE Fighters make a return to action in The Force Awakens. Finn appears to have been piloting one of the fighter ships before crash landing.

British chain Vue Entertainment said it had sold 10,000 tickets within the first 90 minutes, with some customers facing issues purchasing online.

More than 120 American theaters are expected to hold Star Wars marathon events, in which the first six movies of the series will be shown in sequence before the latest installment.

Large chains such as AMC, Regal and Cinemark are holding special events and offering Star Wars merchandise to those who see the film in the first several weeks.

The Force Awakens is expected to bring in a record opening during its first weekend, with Deadline.com saying that it may top $600million.

Some expect it to top $2billion worldwide during its run in theaters, joining the ranks of the highest grossing films of all time, Titanic and Avatar.

Disney recruited experienced action director JJ Abrams to direct, with Lawrence Kasdan and Michael Arndt also working on the screenplay for the media conglomerate's first take on the series.

The final trailer release comes shortly after the release of a poster for the movie, which features prominently Solo, Leia, Finn and Rey.

The poster also showcased Ren and a planet-like object similar to the original three films' Death Star.

Uh oh: Some ticketing sites such as Fandango were experiencing technical problems because of high traffic from Star Wars fans trying to buy tickets

The trailer's release comes after a poster for the upcoming movie featured Han Solo, Princess Leia and Ren as well as a planet-like sphere similar to the Death Star - but again, no Luke Skywalker