When it was announced that Michael Arndt would be writing STAR WARS: EPISODE VII, most of us thought he would go ahead and take a stab at writing Episodes VIII and IX (and yes, I had to look up what the Roman Numeral was for “9”). But it seems that Lucasfilm CEO Kathleen Kennedy is reaching back to a very familiar face to assist in writing the rest of the trilogy. Noneother than Lawrence Kasdan will not only be co-writing the films, but he’ll also be producing them. Kasdan, as most Star Wars fans know, co-wrote the screenplay to STAR WARS: EPISODE V – THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK as well as STAR WARS: EPISODE VI – RETURN OF THE JEDI. They’ve also brought on X-MEN: FIRST CLASS writer Simon Kinberg to write the scripts with Kasdan, perhaps wanting to infuse some new blood to the franchise.
For me, Kasdan’s involvement is the biggest sign yet that the new trilogy will feature familiar faces from the Star Wars universe. I can’t see another reason to bring him back since after Jedi, he kind of distanced himself from the science-fiction genre, going on to direct films like FRENCH KISS and DARLING COMPANION. Speaking of which, he’s also a director and it will be interesting to see if that comes into play later on as well. But right now, THR is reporting that both Kasdan and Kinberg will be writers and producers. If I have one concern, it’s that Arndt hasn’t been confirmed to be involved with VIII and IX. It’s probably not a big deal, but it’s important that the trilogy have a clear beginning and end, so I at least hope there are some serious writers meetings going on over at Disney.
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