Star Wars Episode VII - Knights of the Old Republic

Star Wars Episode VII - Knights of the Old Republic is an upcoming epic space opera, produced by Walt Disney Pictures, Lucasfilm, and Bad Robot Productions, and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is intended to be the seventh installment in the Star Wars film series. The film stars John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Forest Whitaker John Noble, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Max von Sydow, Lupita Nyong'o, and Gwendoline Christie, with Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew and Kenny Baker reprising their roles from previous films. following chronologically in the series 30 years after Return of the Jedi. J. J. Abrams is directing the film from a screenplay he co-wrote with Lawrence Kasdan, who acted as co-writer on The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. They replaced Michael Arndt, who left the project after initially being attached to pen the screenplay and previously writing the story treatment.

Plot
Set approximately thirty years after Return of the Jedi and the demise of Darth Vader, the plot centers around a trio of young leads, along with characters from the previous installments.

Development
On October 30, 2012, it was announced that The Walt Disney Company would acquire Lucasfilm for US$4.05 billion, half in cash and half in shares of Disney. Privately held Lucasfilm would become a unit of Disney, as with Marvel Entertainment and Pixar. As part of the announcement, Disney announced that Star Wars Episode VII would be released in 2015; additional Star Wars films would then be released two or three years apart, Lucasfilm already had Episode VII in early-stage development.

Disney chief executive and chairman Bob Iger told the Financial Times that the deal would slightly reduce returns to shareholders over the next two years, but that it would become profitable for them in 2015, once Episode VII is released.

Star Wars Episode VII is an upcoming film from Lucasfilm scheduled to be released by Walt Disney Pictures in 2015. It is to be the first Star Wars film produced under Disney's ownership of Lucasfilm. Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy will serve as executive producer of the film, and George Lucas will serve as creative consultant.

As part of the Lucasfilm purchase, Disney received an "extensive story treatment" by Lucas for Episode VII. Neither Lucas nor Disney revealed any details of the plot at the film's announcement. It has been confirmed by both companies that Episode VII will be an original story and not directly based on the various novels, graphic novels, or other materials in the Star Wars Expanded Universe that take place during the post-Return of the Jedi time period. This includes, most notably, Timothy Zahn's 1991 novel Heir to the Empire, the first installment in Zahn's Thrawn Trilogy, which was originally considered by some fans to be Episode VII. In a video interview that was part of the purchase announcement, Kennedy stated that she and Lucas had already met with writers to discuss the film script. Less than two weeks after the purchase, Disney announced that Michael Arndt had been chosen to write the screenplay.

In an August 2012 meeting with actors Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill, Lucas disclosed that he would not direct the sequels. This was confirmed as part of the Lucasfilm purchase and no director was named at that time. Spielberg ruled himself out as a possible director, citing his incompatibility with the genre. In addition, Zack Snyder and Quentin Tarantino, who were both rumored to have been evaluated for the directing position, denied the rumors. J.J. Abrams said he is "looking forward to the next iterations of Star Wars, but I will be going as a paying moviegoer." Brad Bird said that his next film would be a science-fiction film, but not Star Wars; he said he "will be first in line to see the new Star Wars." Colin Trevorrow also ruled himself out for Episode VII. Jon Favreau was more open to the idea of directing the film. According to Guillermo del Toro, Disney contacted his agent to inquire if he were interested, but del Toro declined, citing commitments to projects of his own and suggesting Brad Bird as a more suitable choice. Producer Frank Marshall, husband of Kathleen Kennedy and long-time collaborator with her in The Kennedy/Marshall Company, said that the search for a director was down to "a couple of candidates". On January 25, 2013, The Walt Disney Studios and Lucasfilm officially announced Abrams as director and producer, along with Bryan Burk and their company Bad Robot Productions. Production on the film's battle scenes was scheduled to commence in summer 2013 in the United Kingdom.

Harrison Ford indicated he was open to reprising the role of Han Solo, and that the three actors were "upbeat" about returning. It has been rumored Lando Calrissian will be in the film. Ewan McGregor, who portrayed Obi-Wan Kenobi in the prequel trilogy, said that he was open to the possibility of playing the character in Episode VII. Samuel L. Jackson, who played Mace Windu in the prequels, also expressed a desire to return to the franchise. John Williams has expressed interest in returning to score the film.

In February 2013, Hamill said of the sequels that "they are talking to us" and he was scheduled to meet with Arndt and Kennedy. Hamill thought there was interest in reuniting the entire original cast. He said before the Disney sale that he and Fisher met with Lucas, who asked if they were interested in returning, and who said filmmakers would not re-cast their roles and instead write the characters out of the script. Hamill told Lucas he wanted the franchise to return to its more carefree and lighthearted original conception. He also stated his intention to the original cast of Ford, Fisher, Williams, Peter Mayhew and Anthony Daniels to be included in the sequels.

In an interview posted March 2013, Fisher said she would reprise her role as Princess Leia in Star Wars Episode VII, "Elderly. She’s in an intergalactic old folks’ home [laughs]. I just think she would be just like she was before, only slower and less inclined to be up for the big battle". After other media outlets reported this on March 6, her representative said the same day Fisher was joking and nothing has been announced. A day later, Lucas confirmed that Hamill, Ford and Fisher were in the final stages of negotiations and that the actors were in discussions to return before the Disney sale. Lucas stated "Maybe I'm not supposed to say that. I think they want to announce that with some big whoop-de-do, but we were negotiating with them. I won't say whether the negotiations were successful or not".

In April 2013, Disney announced that it plans to release a new Star Wars film annually beginning with Episode VII in 2015. The films will alternate between episodic films in the series, and distinct standalone films about other popular characters.