Disney bought the rights to Star Wars. Episode VII scheduled for 2015.

[Aliem]

http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/10/30/the-walt-disney-company-acquires-lucasfilm-star-wars-episode-vii-set-for-2015?abthid=50904ac3762c0bdc150000a7

Huh. How 'bout that. I wonder if any original cast will be on board.

One thing's for sure, though: light saber keyblades.

EDIT

Whoops, silly me, it wasn't just the Star Wars franchise. It's the entirety of LucasFilm.

[DarkDragon]

I have some friends who are employees of ILM R&D; it'll be interesting how this purchase shakes out long-term. I will say this: it makes a lot more sense to buy Lucasfilm for $4 billion that Instagram for $1 billion.

[erm2003]

I worry how the new movies will end up being perceived It may even end up being a trilogy by the time they are done. Who knows? It's not like Disney has to worry about money when developing these films. I am willing to give it a chance. It's exciting to think of what could happen if it's done well, but I am sure we all have that worry in the back of our heads of how disastrous this could end up being.

[Chris Miller]

i am sure we all have that worry in the back of our heads of how disastrous this will end up being.
ftfy.

[Aliem]

I can't imagine a new film being worse than the prequels. Also, taking into account the films produced under the Marvel/Disney partnership, I have some amount of confidence this will work out.

[DarkDragon]

I can't imagine a new film being worse than the prequels.

Did you watch the Clone Wars animated movie?

[Aliem]

No, I haven't. I didn't see any of the show, either. But based on your post, I assume it's awful?

[Gleeok]

Animated star wars remakes with Donald Duck as Darth Vader and Mickey Mouse as Luke. lol.

[erm2003]

Did you watch the Clone Wars animated movie?

Was this completely done by Lucas or was some of it farmed out? I haven't been paying enough attention to the Clone Wars series and info to know.

[Beldaran]

Any combination of "more Star Wars" and "distance from George Lucas" is amazing and I support it.

[Chris Miller]

You have a valid point there.

[Beldaran]

Actually, I may not have a valid point. I read into the details and found some stuff out. (http://thinkforrestthink.wordpress.com/2012/10/30/be-disappointed-you-will/)

[Xyvol]

Disney has done a lot of good stuff, so it's interesting to see what they'll do with it. One concern, when they say they want to be releasing a new movie every two or three years it sounds less like "we have lots of creative and interesting stories to tell with this franchise" and more like "we want to keep raking in the cash." Tent-poles don't exactly make filmmakers strive for quality.

I'm also interested to see how this effects the live action television series Lucas planned. It's been on hold, waiting for cost to come down.

[Glenn the Great]

I'm cautiously optimistic. I'm sure that the movies and associated merchandising will be a smashing financial success for Disney whether or not the new movies are any good.
Worst case scenario and we end up getting a second round of the prequel trilogy... it won't hurt the original trilogy which is now be guaranteed to be released unedited on blu-ray.

My personal advice to Disney would be to shoot for a PG-13 rating. That way there will be mature content to balance out the Jar Jar type content which will inevitably weasel its way in somewhere.
Second, there needs to be some overlap with the original cast. There's no reason they can't get Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher to return, even just to play a minimal role, such as offering sage advice to the new characters. Also, Harrison Ford will return given enough money. I'm not too concerned with how much the original cast has aged... I'm not expecting Gold Bikini Leia, but Hollywood magic cuts decades off a person's apparent age.

[Beldaran]

At this point, Carrie Fisher could play Jabba the Hutt. If you paint Mark Hamill green you've got your Yoda, and Harrison Ford has spray tanned enough to pull off a decent Lando Calrissian.

[Glenn the Great]

Third, not holding my breath, but I really hope that Disney goes easy on the CGI this time. Use the CGI where it's needed, but lets see some cheap props and carpentered sets to bring back the old-school feel.
Maybe my biggest problem with the prequel trilogy was that it feels like watching Avatar in 2D. A retro vibe would be much appreciated and doesn't have to be mutually exclusive with high production values.

[SUCCESSOR]

It could be awful and it could be great. So Lucas is a creative consultant, at least he doesn't have creative control. Like many have said it can't really be worse than the prequel trilogy. I haven't seen much of the Clone Wars series but I believe it was praised higher than any of the prequel films. In any case my interest in Star Wars ended when Attack of the Clones came out.

[Aliem]

If I recall correctly, Lucas was in a similar role during Empire and Jedi, which are by far the two best in the franchise. It seems like his ideas are great when executed by others, but he is a god-awful director himself.

I think, really, the only way this could be screwed up worse than if Lucas himself wrote and directed the next trilogy (presumably whilst drinking gallons of KFC gravy) is if they over-kill the brand with an episode X and beyond. And, since it's Disney, we all know that'll happen eventually.

[Gleeok]

It seems like his ideas are great when executed by others, but he is a god-awful director himself.

Three words:


http://www.towatchpile.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Howard-the-Duck.jpg

[mrz84]

When I first heard the announcement, my first thought was 'YES! Finally a chance for the Timothy Zahn Thrawn trilogy to be made as movies!' I seriously think that anything after the original trilogy they use, that should be the story they do. It would be most epic.

[XMuppetSB]

You know, I remember when Marvel was purchased by Disney, and I remember those Spider Mickey jokes that I saw all over the web. And since Lucas Films is now owned by Disney, next thing you know, we might be seeing some Darth Mickey jokes, or something like that. Either way, I look forward to the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, and I wonder what new characters will be in it.

PS: With Disney purchasing quite a few major companies over the recent years, for all we know, Sesame Workshop (the company behind Sesame Street) could be next, since Disney already owns The Muppets characters, like Kermit The Frog.

[Glenn the Great]

PS: With Disney purchasing quite a few major companies over the recent years, for all we know, Sesame Workshop (the company behind Sesame Street) could be next...

That could be very likely if Mitt Romney gets elected.

[Brasel]

From Mark Hamill's twitter:

https://twitter.com/HamillHimself/status/263497444862595072

I've also heard that it will be set decades after the Jedi, and will focus on rebuilding the republic. I'm guessing a lot of EU fans will be upset.

[Aliem]

Yeah, I've heard that too. All original stories, not based on EU materials.

[mrz84]

WHAT?! Well that's a let down... *goes to sulk in corner while reading Zahn's books. All of them.*

[Brasel]

http://teamcoco.com/video/wes-anderson-star-wars-episode-vii-audition-tape

I'm gunning for a Wes Anderson SWVII