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When it was announced that Disney would be making more Star Wars films some people celebrated, and others died a little inside as they anticipated Jar Jar 2.0. Now that filming on Episode VII has begun, how much do we actually know about this film?
When can we watch it?
The current release date is 18th December 2015, making it the first Star Wars movie not to be released in May.
The film was originally stapled for the summer of the same year, but various delays forced the release date to be moved. A move that pleased JJ Abrams somewhat.
Who is involved?
JJ Abrams is directing the film, making him the second person to be directly involved in both the Star Trek and Star Wars franchises (the first was George Takei). Abrams also shared the responsibility of rewriting the script with Lawrence Kasdan, co-writer of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
Casting information has been scarce. But there have been plenty of rumours floating around the internet trying to guess who would get the coveted roles. Some were sensible, like the suggestion that Chronicle's Michael B Jordan would play the son of Lando Calrissian, or that uber-geek Simon Pegg would nab himself a place. Others were downright bizarre, including the suggestion that Jennifer Lawrence would play a younger gender-swapped Han Solo.
The only solid confirmation from Lucasfilm is that Peter Mayhew will return as Chewbacca, and that R2-D2 will make an appearance. The general consensus, at the moment, is that Girls actor Adam Driver is set to play the film's villain, and that the original trio (Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford) will reprise their roles in some capacity. It's worth noting that these have not been confirmed by Lucasfilm at this time.
What has been confirmed by JJ Abrams is that the film will go back to its roots and cast unknown actors to play the lead roles. Who they are, or where they come from, has yet to be announced, but it would be nice if some of them won the role from the open auditions.
How's it going to be filmed?
It has been confirmed that the film will not go the way of the awful prequel trilogy by filming with digital cameras. As he did with Super 8, and Star Trek, Abrams will be filming Episode VII on 35mm film. Other than this, and the knowledge that it's being filmed right here in the UK, we haven't got a clue what's going on. It could be 100 per cent CGI (please no), or it could all be model work (unlikely). At least R2 will be real.
What's the plot?
We actually know very little about what's going to be in the film and a lot of work has gone into keeping it that way. There was a possible leak back in the December of 2012, but it's not to be trusted. All we do know is that Episode VII is set 30 years after Return of the Jedi, and will feature a brand new set of characters alongside "some very familiar faces."
What does this mean for the future of the franchise?
The short answer is quite a lot. When Disney first bought Lucasfilm they announced that Episode VII would be the start of a new Star Wars trilogy, with the original announcement stating it would release a new Star Wars film every two-to-three years. It seems Disney changed its minds six months later, however, since it announced that there would be a new film every year from 2015. Disney later clarified that at least some of those stand-alone films will be origin stories focussing on some of our favourite characters.
When can we watch it?
The current release date is 18th December 2015, making it the first Star Wars movie not to be released in May.
The film was originally stapled for the summer of the same year, but various delays forced the release date to be moved. A move that pleased JJ Abrams somewhat.
Who is involved?
JJ Abrams is directing the film, making him the second person to be directly involved in both the Star Trek and Star Wars franchises (the first was George Takei). Abrams also shared the responsibility of rewriting the script with Lawrence Kasdan, co-writer of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
Casting information has been scarce. But there have been plenty of rumours floating around the internet trying to guess who would get the coveted roles. Some were sensible, like the suggestion that Chronicle's Michael B Jordan would play the son of Lando Calrissian, or that uber-geek Simon Pegg would nab himself a place. Others were downright bizarre, including the suggestion that Jennifer Lawrence would play a younger gender-swapped Han Solo.
The only solid confirmation from Lucasfilm is that Peter Mayhew will return as Chewbacca, and that R2-D2 will make an appearance. The general consensus, at the moment, is that Girls actor Adam Driver is set to play the film's villain, and that the original trio (Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford) will reprise their roles in some capacity. It's worth noting that these have not been confirmed by Lucasfilm at this time.
What has been confirmed by JJ Abrams is that the film will go back to its roots and cast unknown actors to play the lead roles. Who they are, or where they come from, has yet to be announced, but it would be nice if some of them won the role from the open auditions.
How's it going to be filmed?
It has been confirmed that the film will not go the way of the awful prequel trilogy by filming with digital cameras. As he did with Super 8, and Star Trek, Abrams will be filming Episode VII on 35mm film. Other than this, and the knowledge that it's being filmed right here in the UK, we haven't got a clue what's going on. It could be 100 per cent CGI (please no), or it could all be model work (unlikely). At least R2 will be real.
What's the plot?
We actually know very little about what's going to be in the film and a lot of work has gone into keeping it that way. There was a possible leak back in the December of 2012, but it's not to be trusted. All we do know is that Episode VII is set 30 years after Return of the Jedi, and will feature a brand new set of characters alongside "some very familiar faces."
What does this mean for the future of the franchise?
The short answer is quite a lot. When Disney first bought Lucasfilm they announced that Episode VII would be the start of a new Star Wars trilogy, with the original announcement stating it would release a new Star Wars film every two-to-three years. It seems Disney changed its minds six months later, however, since it announced that there would be a new film every year from 2015. Disney later clarified that at least some of those stand-alone films will be origin stories focussing on some of our favourite characters.
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