Sequel trilogy

"For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next. It's now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers."

- George Lucas

The Star Wars sequel trilogy is an upcoming film trilogy that begins approximately thirty s after the ending of Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. The trilogy is comprised of the forthcoming Star Wars Episode VII, directed by J.J. Abrams and written by Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan for a release on December 18, 2015; Star Wars Episode VIII, written and directed by Rian Johnson; and Star Wars Episode IX, which Johnson is writing a story treatment for. The films will be produced by Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, with Bad Robot Productions also producing Episode VII. The trilogy will feature the return of classic Star Wars characters, Leia Organa, , , , and , as well as a host of new characters.

Rumors of a sequel trilogy had been talked about for decades, ever since George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, stated that he had plans for films that would take place after the original Star Wars trilogy. As the canon saga developed, however, Lucas denied that a sequel trilogy would ever be made, stating that Star Wars was the story of and that his story ended in Return of the Jedi. The development of the sequel trilogy was made official on October 30, 2012, when The Walt Disney Company announced that it was acquiring Lucasfilm from Lucas and that they would be producing new Star Wars films beginning in 2015. Although Lucas has retired, he continues to serve as a creative consultant on the films.

Films

 * Star Wars Episode VII
 * Star Wars Episode VIII
 * Star Wars Episode IX

Early plans and abandonment
Ideas for a Star Wars sequel trilogy were in place as early as 1976, during the filming of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, the first produced film in the franchise. Mark Hamill, who starred as in the film, recounted that George Lucas, the director of A New Hope, asked if Hamill would be interested in appearing in Star Wars Episode IX in 2011, when Lucas assumed such a film would be made. According to Lucas, Skywalker would "be like handing the  down to the next generation." TIME magazine also reported in 1978, after the success of A New Hope, that Lucas would be producing a sequel to A New Hope and then ten additional films, for a total of four Star Wars trilogies. These early ideas did not reflect the final version of the saga, however; according to J.W. Rinzler, "the original trilogy occupied Episodes VI, VII, and VIII; a trilogy took up Episodes II, III, and IV, while Episode I was a "prelude," Episodes IX through XI were simply left blank – and Episode XII was the "conclusion."

As the saga developed after the success of A New Hope, these plans began to change. Lucas stated in 1979 that there would be three trilogies, plans he continued to talk about into the 1980s. Lucas described the potential sequels as being "what happens to Luke" after the original trilogy, and that it would be "much more ethereal" and "ambitious." By the time Lucas produced Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, the final film of the original trilogy, he no longer had plans to produce a sequel trilogy, stating that the "next trilogy will be someone else's vision."

Several plot points had been discussed for the sequel trilogy that were eventually condensed into Return of the Jedi. According to Gary Kurtz, the producer of A New Hope and Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, the creative team had discussed the sequels showing Skywalker's new life with the, finding his long-lost sister&mdash;at the time, Leia Organa was not Skywalker's sister&mdash; and a final confrontation with.

As the years progressed, and the saga continued to evolve to include a prequel trilogy and the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated film and subsequent television series, it appeared that Lucas had finally abandoned plans for the sequel trilogy. In 2008, Lucas told The LA Times that there would not be a story beyond Return of the Jedi because "the movies were the story of and Luke Skywalker, and when Luke saves  and redeems his father, that's where that story ends." He also cited the Expanded Universe&mdash;now known as the non-canon Star Wars Legends&mdash;as the stories that, despite his lack of involvement in them, continued the saga after Return of the Jedi. In 2012, Lucas also cited the critical reaction from some Star Wars fans towards the prequel trilogy as another reason for why he did not intend to create the sequel trilogy.

Confirmed trilogy
The Walt Disney Company purchased the rights to Star Wars from George Lucas in October of 2012. Disney has confirmed that a new trilogy will be arriving in 2015, with J.J. Abrams directing the first episode. The films will have 2-3 year gaps between them alike the previous trilogies. Some original trilogy cast will be returning.