Star Wars: The Return of the Spin-Off

Today wasn't just about the Frozen 2 announcement for Bob Iger: during the same shareholder meeting, he also brought the Star Wars saga to the table, and a few reveals were made - not about one film, but about two. More after the break.

First, it was confirmed that Rian Johnson (Looper) will write and direct Star Wars: Episode VIII, and a release date was announced: the eighth film of the main Star Wars story will be released on the 26th May, 2017 - at least in the US.

Rian Johnson

Also announced was the title of the first Star Wars spin-off. It will be called Rogue One and will open in US theaters on the 16th December, 2016. The film, directed by Gareth Edwards (last year's Godzilla) and will star Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything), as was previously rumoured.

Gareth Edwards

Here is the full press release:

ROGUE ONE IS THE FIRST STAR WARS STAND-ALONE FILM, RIAN JOHNSON TO WRITE AND DIRECT STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII

THE TITLE FOR DIRECTOR GARETH EDWARDS’ STAND-ALONE MOVIE, FEATURING ACTRESS FELICITY JONES, IS REVEALED, AND RIAN JOHNSON IS CONFIRMED FOR STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII — COMING TO THEATERS MAY 26, 2017.

“Always in motion is the future,” Yoda said. The future of the Star Wars cinematic galaxy, however, is taking shape.

This morning at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, across the street from Lucasfilm, Disney chairman and CEO Bob Iger hosted a shareholder meeting where he announced news regarding the first Star Wars stand-alone movie as well as Star Wars: Episode VIII.

Rogue One is the title for the first film in a unique series of big-screen adventures that explores the characters and events beyond the core Star Wars saga. Rogue One will be directed by Gareth Edwards (Monsters, Godzilla) and written by Oscar nominee Chris Weitz (Cinderella, About a Boy, Antz). The first actress cast is Felicity Jones, who garnered an Academy Award nomination and critical acclaim for her performance in The Theory of Everything. The idea for the story of Rogue One came from John Knoll, an Academy Award-winning visual effects supervisor and chief creative officer at Industrial Light & Magic. He will executive produce along with Simon Emanuel (The Dark Knight Rises, Fast & Furious 6) and Jason McGatlin (Tintin, War of the Worlds). Kathleen Kennedy and Tony To (Band of Brothers, The Pacific) are on board to produce and John Swartz (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) will co-produce. The film starts shooting this summer in London and is due for release on December 16, 2016.

In addition, Iger confirmed that Rian Johnson will write and direct Star Wars: Episode VIII. The film, which continues the saga after the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, is set for release on May 26, 2017 — forty years and a day after the release of Star Wars: A New Hope in 1977. Johnson is widely considered one of cinema’s most gifted young filmmakers, having directed the modern sci-fi classic, Looper, as well as Brick and The Brothers Bloom. He was also behind the camera for three episodes of the critically-acclaimed TV series Breaking Bad, including “Ozymandias,” which series creator Vince Gilligan named as the best installment of the show. Kathleen Kennedy and Ram Bergman, producer of Looper, Don Jon, Brick, and The Brothers Bloom, are on board to produce, and J.J. Abrams will serve as executive producer.