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As details continue to flood in regarding the just-announced Star Wars: Episode VII, EW managed to catch up with Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill, who reveals that he was made aware of plans for a third trilogy last August.

"[George Lucas] asked Carrie [Fisher] and I to have lunch with him and we did," Hamill says, "I thought he was going to talk about either his retirement or the 'Star Wars' TV series that Ive heard about which I dont think we were going to be involved in anyway, because that takes place between the prequels and the ones we were in and, if Luke were in them, hed be anywhere from a toddler to a teenager so theyd get an age-appropriate actor or the 3-D releases. So when he said, 'We decided were going to do Episodes VII, VIII, and IX, I was just gobsmacked. What? Are you nuts?! [Laughs]"

Although Hamill learned of the plans for more films, he was as surprised as anyone at the announcement of Lucasfilm being bought by Disney when he read about it online yesterday. He also doesn't know what involvement - if any - he'll have in future Star Wars films, but he remains optimistic as a fan.

"I can see both sides of it," he says. "Because in a way, there was a beginning, a middle, and an end and we all lived happily ever after and thats the way it should be and its great that people have fond memories, if they do have fond memories. But on the other hand, theres this ravenous desire on the part of the true believers to have more and more and more material. Its one of those things: people either just dont care for it or are passionate about it. I guess that defines what cult movies are all about."

Brad Bird Says He Won't Direct Star Wars: Episode VII
Source: Brad Bird, November 17, 2012

A top choice among fans since word of Star Wars: Episode VII first broke, director Brad Bird has, today, confirmed that he won't be involved in the production of the 2015 release. Instead, he plans to move forward with another project at Walt Disney Pictures, a science fiction film currently being called 1952.

Bird, who has directed films like The Iron Giant, The Incredibles, Ratatouille and Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, finally broke his silence on Twitter.

The Star Wars cinematic galaxy is about to experience a Big Bang. Lucasfilm is officially announcing new spinoff films that will expand the mythos and depths of the Star Wars universe in previously unexplored ways.

One of the standalone films will be written by Lawrence Kasdan, screenwriter of The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and co-writer of Return of the Jedi while the other will be penned by Simon Kinberg, writer of Sherlock Holmes and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. The movies will be separate from the upcoming Episodes VII, VIII, and IX, on which Kasdan and Kinberg are also consulting, and are expected to be released sometime after Episode VII. Each standalone film will focus on a specific character, and two spinoff films are currently confirmed.

In a call to investors, Bob Iger, chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company, revealed while the original focus was on the highly-anticipated sequel trilogy, the idea of spinoff films was bandied about early and the additional films are now becoming a reality. "We are in development of a few standalone films," he said, "that are not part of the Star Wars saga…there are now creative entities working on developing scripts for what would be those standalone films."

...wird sich J.J. Abrams bei dem für Disney gedrehten “Star Wars – Episode VII” wieder auf klassischen 35 mm-Film verlassen. Das erklärte Abrams jetzt im Rahmen einer Promo-Tour für die von ihm produzierte Serie “Believe” nachdem er gefragt wurde, ob er auch wie bei “Star Trek” mit IMAX-Kameras drehen wird. Das wird vorerst allerdings nicht geschehen, da Abrams vieles am praktischen Einsatz der derzeitigen analogen IMAX-Kameras stört und er auf digitale IMAX-Kameras warten will.

Gary Oldman just confirmed that he was approached for a role in the new movie.

Adam Driver is in final negotiations to star as the main villain in "Star Wars: Episode VII."

The Star Wars team is thrilled to announce the cast of Star Wars: Episode VII.

Actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join the original stars of the saga, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film.

Director J.J. Abrams says, "We are so excited to finally share the cast of Star Wars: Episode VII. It is both thrilling and surreal to watch the beloved original cast and these brilliant new performers come together to bring this world to life, once again. We start shooting in a couple of weeks, and everyone is doing their best to make the fans proud."

Star Wars: Episode VII is being directed by J.J. Abrams from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and Abrams. Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams, and Bryan Burk are producing, and John Williams returns as the composer