HOW ARE YOU PEOPLE NOT TALKING ABOUT THIS? http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/01/24/jj-abrams-to-direct-star-wars-episode-vii
There's so much talk on these things that I'll wait until there's a press release to believe it, but I guess that's okay. The big thing there will be that the writer is already chosen, so it's not like Abrams can bring in any of his Bad Robot posse to do finishing touches on it. That doesn't seem like a thing he'd be down for, but what do I know?
Yeah, I'm treating anything on this as bullshit until I see an official press release or someone's name in the credits.
Why don't you believe "an individual with knowledge of the production" who talked to a website called "Thewrap"? He sounds like a reliable source.
Well, for all Abrams Trek's flaws, it was still a better Star Wars movie than any of the prequels. So's Ass Bandits III: Enema of the State, but I guess that's something.
J.J. Abrams is going to direct SW7. Talk about crossing the streams. Also, while I didn't mind the ST reboot, it had its weak aspects as well and I was far from sure that Abrams would be able to sustain it past the initial novelty of the new cast and sensibility. On the whole I'd have preferred some other competent non-lens-flarey director.
Artist friend of mine from back in the Codemasters days likes to paint watercolors of Disney princesses and so-on. She did this lovely picture of the Princesses welcoming Leia into the fold! You can see her Tumblr account here.
Also, since it has been bugging me for ages, GOD DAMN I HATE WHAT DISNEY DOES TO ITS OWN PROPERTIES! My son has a "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse" story book (from his Oma) and the writing is godawful. The stories are long and tedious and the writing style really cumbersome. All of the contributors seem to have gone to the "don't keep using 'said' more than once per page" school of writing so characters declare, shout, and ask (and more) their way through the stories. Also, in general MM:CH is a terrible program (badly animated, boring, sexist, ugly) and I'm constantly surprised Disney is ok with their "flagship" character being so poorly treated. Not that it breaks my heart, I just don't get it.
Truly one of the great travesties of our time. Imagine what could have been. "LEEEEEIA! YOUWAH TEARING ME APAAAAHT! GET OWT! GET OWT OFF MY LAHF!" "I did nawt go to da dahk side! I did nawt - oh, hi Han."
Eilonwy is presumably back in the books, since the artist has perceived that Disney prefers to pretend that The Black Cauldron never existed. It's right ahead of Song of the South in their favorites list. My response to Wiseau: OHAI VADER! That's still the thing that sticks with me the most from that movie. With regard to the news: well okay. We know that Abrams is a competent director, and he's pretty damn able to keep a secret. I'm still kind of impressed that he's walking into this thing that he has absolutely no control over at all, and it'll be interesting to see if he actually makes it through or ends up quitting in disgust. I have high hopes, though I do think that Disney is probably paying too much for the directorial talent (Matthew Vaughn or any number of other less-expensive-than-Abrams guys could easily have been gotten). I hope that it works out in the end, although I shudder at the expectations this sets up for the talent on the sequel.
Disney cans plans to re-release the rest of the prequels in 3D. In favor of focusing on the new movies. Well done. I am pleased.
Why am I not surprised of a rumour of a Yoda spin-off movie? Disney has to make its money back on the $4 billion somehow...
There have been rumors of spin-offs since the purchase went through, including one directed by Zack Snyder. I wouldn't be entirely surprised by a Yoda one-shot, but I do have to wonder what you'd actually do with that. Yoda is not a character about whom I have a tremendous number of questions. Even among the Jedi, there are others I would be more curious about (Mace Windu had some promise that was never realized, and basically all those other random collections of syllables from the prequels are enough of a blank slate that you could fill in with interesting stuff).
If they absolutely have to do a spin-off movie, I'd be interested in seeing one with Ahsoka (Anakin's padawan in The Clone Wars) that deals with what happens to her during the Jedi Purge. In a way it would be a good fit for Disney - Ahsoka could be their sci-fi princess. Only problem is that the film would almost certainly end on a down note, regardless of whether or not Ahsoka survives the Purge. Edit: Unless, I guess, they were to release it as a companion piece to Episode VII, intended to fill in some background on how a now mature Ahsoka came to be living in recluse on the remote planet of Neitherdagobahnortatooine.
I'd hate to see a Yoda story because I'd hate to see the new producers/director not learn anything from Lucas's over reliance on CG storytelling. It makes me think of Red Letter Media's (i.e., that Plinkett guy) scathing review of the prequels where he showed how asking actors and directors use nothing but a green screen and a tennis ball was a big step down in the visual storytelling. If the potential of "un-Lucasing" Star Wars is to be realized, they can't use an all CGI main character that's going to lead them down that road again.
