Lucasfilm Ltd. & TMDoes Star Wars 7 gotten a writer or director yet? Hadn't they better get on that?
—P.G., via Twitter
As happy as we'd be to see this flick come together at light speed, remember: the newest episode in the Star Wars chronicles isn't expected to hit theaters until 2015. That leaves plenty of time.
Still, there are a ton of rumors bubbling up about the project—who might write, direct, and of course, who might star.
Let's start with the director.
The first rumor I heard was that Pixar's Brad Bird (The Incredibles, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol) might be in the offing; he was seen up at Skywalker Ranch just as news was breaking about the Disney purchase of Chewbacca, Yoda and the gang. I've since been told, however, that he simply keeps an office up there, and that his presence has nothing to do with Star Wars 7. At least, not yet.
Other movie news sites, meanwhile, peg Matthew Vaughn, who directed X-Men: First Class, as a possible helmer, while other names being bandied about include Steven Spielberg (which would be AWESOMESAUCE), Darren Aronofsky, Alfonso Cuaron (who directed the best of the Harry Potter films) and District 9's Neil Blomcamp.
As for writers, there's a spanking-fresh rumor from Vulture pointing to the script stylings of Michael Arndt, who won an Oscar for penning Little Miss Sunshine before moving on to Hunger Games: Catching Fire. The Hollywood Reporter takes the rumor at step further, saying Arndt already has a treatment written.
In terms of acting, there's a practical windstorm of whispers hinting that the series' holy trinity—Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill—are all in some stage of maybe returning: They're being courted, or they've indicated they're open to being courted, or they're a lock, or at least one of them is a lock.
Here's what you should definitely know: As of last week, no director had been picked, and at this hour, Lucasfilm is lying low. They didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.