A New Star Wars Trilogy
It is not news that Disney purchased Lucasfilm and announced that work will begin on episodes VII, VIII, and IX (seven- nine) in early 2013. But what are these going to be about? I see four possibilities, (1) pick up soon after where Return of the Jedi ended, (2) a story further down the line, (3) something way down the line, or (4) a story unrelated to what we’ve seen.
Option 1: Pick up where it left off
This story would focus on the establishment of the New Republic and New Jedi Order, and would continue with the same charters we fell in love with when we saw the original trilogy. As much as I’d love to see stories with Grand Admiral Thrawn or Ikrit or Mara Jade, a Glove of Vader focused trilogy, or anything written my Timothy Zahn made into a movie, I do not like this option. Recasting the core charters (because none of them look the same and can’t play thirty-something anymore) is something I hope never happens.
Option 2: A little down the line
This storyline could include Luke Skywalker, Han and Leia Solo, and others, just as older characters that are not necessarily the center of the story. Something along the lines of Fate of the Jedi (yes, Luke plays a big part there, but I think you get the idea). I love the idea of the original characters (played by the correct actors) being on the silver screen again.
Option 3: Story from far into the future (compared to Episode XI)
This would be something already established as having a connection to the original trilogy, but because it happens so much later none of the characters are the same. Maybe a focus on Cade Skywalker?
Option 4: Something completely new
Many people don’t realize this, there are more than just six Star Wars films currently, and I don’t just mean the Holiday Special, or the cartoons, or the Lego shorts; I’m talking about movies like “Ewoks: Battle for Endor”. I don’t think that every Star Wars film has to be serial with the first three, but Episode VII should be. So while I encourage this idea of non-cannon films, I think that if it is a numbered episode it needs to be relatable, chronologically, to the original episodes.
A few years ago I sent a message to George Lucas and Lucasfilm stating that I would gladly portray a member of the Skywalker family, Solo family, or other character in future Star Wars films free of charge (I know George wanted an unknown to star in the first series). I don’t think I’ll be in Episode VII (or other Star Wars movies) unfortunately, but am super excited for these new films!
Here are the sites from which I pulled all this cool fan art:
http://www.moddb.com/groups/501st-legion-vaders-fist-fan-group/images/star-wars-episode-vii-poster
http://www.liveforfilms.com/2012/11/26/star-wars-episode-7-design-challenge-winners/
http://www.moviefancentral.com/cochise-2/top10s/24417
http://www.nextmovie.com/blog/best-star-wars-disney-episode-7-fanart/
http://www.liveforfilms.com/2012/11/20/star-wars-episode-7-poster-competition-vote-for-your-favourite/
http://geektyrant.com/news/2012/11/9/collection-of-star-wars-episode-vii-fan-made-poster-art.html
http://www.joblo.com/movie-news/some-cool-star-wars-episode-vii-fan-posters-to-offset-the-news-that-steven-spielberg-bows-out-of-contention-as-director
http://theactionelite.com/2012/11/daydreaming-of-star-wars-episode-vii-heir-to-the-empire/
http://cityonfiredotcom.tumblr.com/
There are some truly artists out there who love Star Wars, please visit the sites and give them props.
