Early last week, as we were all just patiently waiting for Star Wars: The Last Jedi and going about our daily non-Jedi related routine, we discovered that Colin Trevorrow (Jurassic World) had stepped down as director of Episode IX. This news sent the internet community into a frenzy about who might jump into the now vacated role. As expected, it did not take Lucasfilm long to find a replacement and it’s a familiar name. The man who kickstarted the new trilogy of Star Wars films with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, J.J. Abrams has returned to the franchise to write and direct the final chapter.
Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy spoke about Abrams return to the series saying, “With The Force Awakens, J.J. delivered everything we could have possibly hoped for, and I am so excited that he is coming back to close out this trilogy.”
Recently Phil Lord and Christopher Miller left the Untitled Han Solo Film and were replaced by Ron Howard, citing creative differences as the reason. It’s a similar story with Trevorrow’s departure from Episode IX.
When production began on The Force Awakens, it was clear to Lucasfilm that Abrams was overjoyed to be taking on this film. He was a fan of the franchise and had done so well with his work on that other beloved Sci-Fi franchise Star Trek. The ninth film is in good hands, but fans are already beginning to wonder if the film wouldn’t have been better served with some new blood at the helm. The Last Jedi will see writer/director Rian Johnson’s vision of the galaxy far, far away and some were excited to see what Trevorrow, the man who did wonders for the Jurassic Park franchise, would do with our favorite band of rebels.
Principal photography begins in January 2018 and the film’s release is set for December 2019, so we won’t have to wait too long to see what Abrams has in store for Episode IX. In the meantime, we have The Last Jedi coming out in just a few short months on and the untitled Han Solo film on May 25, 2018 to tide us over until then.
For now, what do you guys think of Abrams taking over the story he started with Episode VII? Who would you have rather seen writing and directing Episode IX? Let us know in the comments below!
