A Grand Reunion for Star Wars VII?

Star Wars VII  is getting closer to what it should be. Or at least, it was getting closer even before Disney bought Lucasfilm and announced they were making it. George Lucas recently confirmed that negotiations were going on with Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford (the original Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Hans Solo, respectively) for Star Wars VII planned to be released in 2015.

However, the Disney buyout may have changed things a bit.

The Star Wars Saga Continues

After Star Wars became a big hit and just before “The Empire Strikes Back” was released, George Lucas stated in interviews that he envisioned Star Wars: A New Hope to be part 4 of the 9-part series of movies. Or as he wanted it to be made, it was going to be a set of three trilogies. The first three movies made (IV: A New Hope; V: The Empire Strikes Back; and VI: Return of the Jedi) would be the second act of the story, about the Rebel Alliance winning against the Empire. The next three (I: The Phantom Menace; II: Attack of the Clones; and III: Revenge of the Sith) would be about the fall of the Republic, which was the prequel. The last three would be the rebuilding of the Republic. In earlier reports, Lucas said that Hamill, Fisher and Ford would be welcome to come back to reprise their roles in the last trilogy, if they looked old enough by the time the pictures were made.

Last year, Disney bought Lucafilms for $4 billion, and have shown their intent to release Star Wars VII in 2015. Since then Disney has signed J.J. Abrams to direct the continuation of the franchise, but there has not been any confirmation of the participation of Hamill, Fisher or Ford. They reprised their roles in the sequels “Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi.”

Star Wars Affected by Buyout

George Lucas explained that there were ongoing negotiations between Lucasfilm and the three original Star Wars stars before Disney bought Lucasfilm. Lucas also mentioned that the negotiations were going well, and that the actors had signified their interest in the project. However, even with the Disney announcement of Star Wars VII in 2015, the situation might have changed.

The studio has already signed up Academy Award winner Michael Arndt to write the screenplay. Also signed up to write and produce Star Wars VIII and IX are Lawrence Kasdan, who had worked on “Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi,” and Simon Kinberg. Kathleen Kennedy will serve as executive producer, and George Lucas will stay on as creative consultant.

Before the buyout, Lucas had transferred control to Kathleen Kennedy who stepped up as CEO of Lucasfilm. Disney has since confirmed that Lucas will be retiring soon. Although Lucasfilm remains an independent company which is wholly-owned by Disney, Star Wars is the biggest science fiction franchise in terms of merchandise and receipts and they would be remiss in their duties if they do not make the movie. Since it was first released, Star Wars has never receded from the movie-going audience’s consciousness and has always been kept alive by sequels and merchandising. It is so popular that references to the franchise crop up regularly in film, television and in advertising.