joe_b

I believe his offical role on the project is "creative consultant"... but yeah, it's more of a courtesy that they run any major changes by him for approval. Disney still has final say at the end of the day.

Artman

Sounds like JJ is giving into his inner fanboy... can't say I blame him, it would be tempting knowing you had the option to make a movie with the OT cast. If these new movies were locked in as a trilogy this would be a mistake, since you'd want to use the 6.5-7hrs you have to establish the new characters and tell their story.

But thinking about it more...this isn't a three and done thing - they could just make Ep7 a transition film and than 3+ more with the new cast. I bet they're signing new cast members to 6+ films anyways - to cover both the 'episode' movies and possible appearances in spin-offs.

resinrats

I'm thinking she' Lando's daughter. You really think Space Billy Dee doesn't have a few kids out there?

Drexl

How about Margot Bingham? She was the absolutely stunning (to me, anyway) singer on the 4th season of Boardwalk Empire.

stvn1974

Kenobi should totally have a daughter. If true this could be a bigger fuck up than all three prequels.

Obi-Wanma

A man gets lonely all those years in the desert

Solid Snake

Somebody has to got to fuck a jawa. Totally makes sense.

stvn1974

The mixed race or black actress the casting call is for is most likely Lando's daughter. A smooth scoundrel like him is bound to have kids all over the galaxy. And as the prequels show there is no such thing as birth control or even gynecologists in the Star Wars universe. You are in a secret marriage that no one can no about so you would probably wrap that shit up to keep from getting pregnant you would think. And if you are having bad dreams about your wife dying in child birth why not to see a doctor? Probably because they would find out you are having twins and thus fucking up the entire screen play.

taffer

A jedi jawa would be awesome.

Ranger

I like the Lando daughter idea. Have her be some fancy casino owner dealin' with the underworld mobsters.

How come Kasdan didn't work on the prequels? He didn't want to work with Lucas?

story

Not that I ever found Episode III to be cinematic gold but the ridiculous plot hole you just pointed out means I'll never be able to watch it the same again.

JeremyM

I think Kasdan was doing his own thing then.

Wasn't the word that they were using story treatments from Lucas as the basis for this new trilogy? That seems to be out the door now, which might not be a bad thing.

MoviePage

Christensen got a lot more opportunities from being in Star Wars than he would have without being in Star Wars. The problem is that he is a bad actor in everything.

mcnabb

I think JJ's thinking is about getting the OT generation back (that were burned by the PT) in the theater for Episode 7, and the only way to do that is to sell them that Luke, Leia and Han will have prominent roles.

I sort of agree with this simply because most of my friends (were all from the OT generation) just don't give a shit about the ST, no matter how much I have talked about since that October 2012 announcement. They were burned so much by the PT, they just don't care for any new SW movies anymore (along with any new changes to the OT movies), but Luke, Leia and Han will give them a reason to see it.

That is why I say that Episode 7 HAS to deliver, and can't just be a set-up movie like Episode 1 was. This movie has to unify the SW base of fans again, or many will not bother with Episode 8. But I also think that many SW fans (who were burned by the PT) will walk into Episode 7 with NO expectations, and they may be pleasantly suprised if the movie is good.

No matter how the movie ends up, I will say that the first trailer for Episode 7 featuring Luke, Leia and Han on screen for the first time in 30+ years will be sort of surreal. I remember reading in 1987 (I was in 8th grade) that Lucas was not going to film the ST and I was so pissed at the time. The fact that it is finally here will definetly give me goosebumps!

Jay G.

I'm pretty sure it was because Lucas didn't want collaborators on the prequels, he wanted to write and direct them himself, like he did with the original Star Wars. Remember that in Lucas's mind, the only reason Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi had different screenwriters and directors was because Lucas was too busy setting up/running Lucasfilm to do it all himself.

Oliver Clothesoff

I'm okay with VII focusing primarily on Luke et al. to give them a proper final send off... it's only fair to have some closure around those characters many of us love. The only people upset by the news that Abrams changed the script to be more OT character heavy are the weirdos on TFN who love the prequels (of course, they also want Palpatine back and Hayden as an Anakin Force Ghost to reach out to Luke).

Jay G.

Actually, I hate the prequels, and I'm of two minds of this rumored change.

On the one hand, I love the OT and would like to see more of those characters. On the other hand, they're getting pretty up there in age. I already got a decent OT sequel trilogy back in the 90s with the Timothy Zhan novels, and the 90s would've been the best time to have made the sequel trilogy films with the original cast.

As it is now, each trilogy so far has focused on a different set of characters from a different generation. The main characters from the prequel trilogy are supporting characters in the original trilogy. It would make sense to pass on the torch to a new set of characters, letting the OT character act in supporting roles. I love Han Solo, but seeing a 70 year old Harrison Ford try to act like an action hero somewhat strains credibility.

mcnabb

I agree with you as I go back and forth on how the ST should be structured, but I think the TFN weirdo's reasons are much different then ours.

The TFN wacko's just don't want the ST to begin with because it fucks with their 'Tragedy of Darth Vader' story. But if they do an ST, they want Hayden Christenson to be a Alec Guiness-like Force Ghost to guide the Skywalker Grandkids through the whole trilogy. Let me just say if Hayden even sniffs this trilogy, I won't even bother seeing them.

The only negative I see in the Luke, Leia and Han being prominent in Episode 7, and their kids being more prominent in Episode 8-9 is what happened in the PT. In the PT, Lucas blew an opportunity in Episode 1 for the fans to get to know Obiwan and an older Anakin. That whole movie should have been about 2 friends for 2 hours being Jedi's that were talked about in the OT while advancing plot of the PT. Instead we get a young Anakin, which we never get to know while Obiwan gets minimal screentime. So we get to Episode 2 and then we have to get to know these characters all over again. Hopefully Abrams gives the Skywalker kids an ample amount of screentime in Episode 7 so we care about them enough to follow them through Episode 8 and 9.

Shannon Nutt

Yes, and then when the movie makes more than any previous Star Wars film, Disney will say "Know what, JJ? Let's just do the whole trilogy with these guys, and save the kids for later."

This news is actually the first hint that JJ knows exactly what fans want to see. It's a shame it took over 30 years to make it happen.

milo bloom

I'm definitely (even more) excited to know JJ wants to push the original cast more. I was on board with them doing "pass the torch" scenes, but if he can get Hamil, Ford and Fisher into substantial roles, that's almost too good to believe.


And as a side issue, it also makes we wonder if JJ may be pushing Disney to release the original versions of the OT on Bluray to help rebuild the fanbase.

mcnabb

I agree. I think Abrams needs to just decide who he is going to cater the movies to, and realize that you can't please everyone.

The biggest mistake Lucas made is that he tried to cater the PT to everyone, and by doing that the movies end up all over the place. Some dark areas appealing to an older crowd, some fanboy areas appearing to the diehards, some kiddy areas appealing to young children.

If Abrams wants to cater them to the OT generation then just go all out with Han, Luke and Leia and let the TFN wacko's complain, but atleast they know that going in.

If Abrams wants the tone of the movies to cater to an older OT audience, they be upfront and parents are forewarned they will be more in the tone of ESB rather then the PT.

If Abrams wants to cater to the fanboys and young children and make the tone in that realm, then I won't bother with the movies because I know they are not made for me.

Michael Corvin

Tfn?

The Cow

TheForce.Net

mcnabb

www.theforce.net

If you want a good laugh, go to the forums there as that site is populated by a strange base of Star Wars fans. They are fans that love the Prequels, love EVERY Special Edition change, hang on EVERY word Lucas says as the law, and dont care for the Original Star Wars as they say it is slow and boring (They call it A New Hope and call fans out who call it Star Wars). I go there every once in a while to get a good laugh at how crazy these people are and the how sad it is that they are apart of our Star Wars fanbase!

TGM

I just don't want Han Solo to die...