Star Wars 7 Gets the Disney Force: Toy Story 3 Scribe Michael Arndt Writing Screenplay

Oscar winner for Little Miss Sunshine will pen screenplay for hugely anticipated addition to franchise after already writing outline

By Natalie Finn Nov 10, 2012 4:45 AMTags
Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Star WarsLucasfilm Ltd. & TM

The Disneyfication of Star Wars is in full force.

Toy Story 3 scribe Michael Arndt, who was nominated for an Academy Award for his addition to the Disney-Pixar franchise and previously won an Oscar for his Little Miss Sunshine screenplay, has been tapped to pen the script for Episode VII in the venerable series, Lucasfilm confirmed Friday.

Arndt had already penned a 40- to 50-page outline for Star Wars 7 and was considered a top candidate for the job.

So, that's one rumor cleared up!

The mill has also churned out word that Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill will make appearances in the hugely anticipated sequel, though not as Leia and Luke, seeing as how the film will feature the characters at more of a Return of the Jedi age.

Neil Blomkamp, Darren Aronofsky, Alfonso Cuarón and some young upstart named Steven Spielberg have also been bandied about as possible directors.

When Disney announced that it had acquired Lucasfilm for $4.05 billion, it also thrilled generations of fans with the news that, not only is Episode VII due in 2015, but that two more sequels were in the works, to be released two to three years apart.

"If this is true, Michael Arndt is the perfect choice," Lost executive producer and Star Trek scribe Damon Lindelof tweeted yesterday, when the news was still in the rumor phase. "We're in good hands, fellow nerds."