According to a report by The Wrap, Super 8/Star Trek director JJ Abrams is set to take on Star Wars Episode VII for the newly Disney-acquired incarnation of Lucasfilm. With JJ Abrams involved, my level of interest in this project has been officially raised from *shrug* to Code Mouthfart.
Haha, something something lens flares.
Lucasfilm Chief Kathleen Kennedy has been courting Abrams, one of the most successful directors and producers in Hollywood — and a man beloved by fanboys. He runs one of the industry’s top production companies, Bad Robot, and created or co-created television franchises like “Lost,” “Fringe” and “Alias.” He has also directed film spectacles “Mission: Impossible III,” “Star Trek” and “Super 8.”
The lure of the Jedi was too strong, and it will no doubt complicate his relationship with Paramount, where Bad Robot is a top supplier. Abrams has been feverishly working on “Star Trek Into Darkness,” his second Star Trek film since he rebooted the franchise in 2009. “Into Darkness,” still in post-production, opens May 18.
The same guy is directing both Star Wars and Star Trek, shouldn’t that be illegal? I bet some 35-year-old virgins are none to happy about this. Not me though, I get tons of pussy. I have this really hot girlfriend, she goes to Stanford.
I’d like to see a very special Episode of Star Wars, where Han Solo goes to a Take Back The Night rally.
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Wait wait, the guy who hates everything is a JJ Abrams fan?
I don’t hate everything. I hate soft, trendy, hipstery crap like Anderson and Tarantino. Bandwagon trendy ca-ca. I goof on big dumb action movies, but Abrams is the first director in the last 30 years who gets the tone and subtleties of these kinds of event movies.
I’m with you if we’re talking Star Trek. Super 8 was a fart balloon though.
To make it easier for you to figure out: I am a child of the 80′s. I was 5 years old when I first saw Star Wars, which was my first movie. I was completely spoiled by growing up in the era of the super awesome Blockbuster, and by the time I reached my early 20′s in the 90′s I began to seriously loathe the turns pop culture in general made towards grunge and self loathing stupidity, and trendy mocking exploitation stuff. I like stuff that is fun to watch, and is an escape, and really don’t get into sad, weepy, woe is me sad sack stuff like Wes Anderson and his sycophantic copycats make. (I’m looking at you Sophia Coppola) and I just don’t like Tarantino because he’s trying to hard to be stylized, instead of just being good and stylish.
Super 8 was fun, but over-hyped as the next “ET”, which it wasn’t. Star Trek was pretty much perfect. IF he can take Star Wars in that direction, I will be the happiest 40 year old man-child on the planet.
I like those kinds of movies. I’ve seen all the Back to the Futures about a billion times. I just don’t like the modern versions of that where you just toss out a million clichés and then go “It was a throwback! It’s true to the genre! It’s supposed to be for kids!” Star Trek was the rare exception to that (though it did have some shitty shaky-cam during the action sequences).
Love the new Star Trek expect for the bit where Scotty teleports into the pipe, it was a bit too slapstick.
Got about 20 minutes into Super 8 and gave up, pure shite, also I hate everything he’s done on TV, here’s hoping he gets Star Wars right, maybe he can do the Origin tale and they can get Nolan to do the dark second act and maybe Brad Bird to do an epic finale :)
My only problem with this plan is Nolan will re-cast the female lead with some fugly clod like Maggie SadTurtle or Scout Willis and try to make it too “real” like making the lightsabers run on D-Cells and casting Morgan Freeman as Rice Bamboo, Mace Windu’s old ass inspirationally speaking cousin.
Eh, I liked “Super 8.” But the rest of your comment is right in my wheelhouse.
I got Super 8 from Netflix. Tried to watch it twice. Fell asleep both times.
Chris Nolan will never direct a Star Wars film, the studio will only provide digital cameras.
I don’t particularly care for Abrams’ work. To me, it seems like he’s trying too hard to be Spielberg Part 2, and I’ve grown so tired of Spielberg Part 1.
On another note, they should have hired Nicholas Refn to do Star Wars. Han and Leia’s flirting is reduced to blank stares, paired with a Pet Shop Boys soundtrack.
Wait wait wait wait. Hang on.
JJ Abrams is shorter than Tom Cruise?!?
That was my first thought. In addition to directing he can take a supporting role as R2-D2
my thought exactly: ‘no way tom cruise is taller than [anybody] abrams…’
fuckin’ bullshit forced perspective pictures
I thought I was the only one who saw that… The both can cameo as ewoks for all I care, as long as JJ Abrams directs, My hopes are high.
Cruise’s withcraft is fooling y’all
And he looks kinda jewey.
There has to be some kind of perspective issue, but they’re right next to each other! I mean they’re literally arm-in-arm, and Cruise looks like he’s a solid 3 inches taller than Abrams.
Not pictured: The poor Scientology “intern” that Cruise is standing on.
Star Wars is gonna be a little kid’s dream..a little dead kid’s dream..or some shit.
Oh, shit. LET THE NERD WARS BEGIN.
(Hey JJ, how about casting somebody from Fringe in these movies? Do iiiiiiiit.)
Pacey as Luke Skywalker
John Noble as a Jedi master pweeze.
OH GOD JEDI MASTER LANCE REDDICK.
Star Wars was awesome. Then the promise of the prequels was awesome. Then the Phantom Menace was kinda cool for a while but when measured against the original trilogy it was sad and disappointing. Then Attack of the Clones was exciting for a while. But then not so much. Great things were expected of Revenge of the Sith and decent and fair expectations were met.
What the fuck are we supposed to be expecting for this one?
And why the fuck are those two girls in the corner always laughing and smiling. I just know they’re making fun of me.
“Something Something Lens Flare”
Owwww….let me take the first shot. Not only will the light sabers be able to cut flesh and steel, they will blind you if you look at them.
OMG!!!! Nerdfart!!1!
I think you sharted (nerd burn)
Whatever the nerd version is of sploosh. Which I guess is just sploosh.
Star Trek was way more awesome than it had any right to be. This is intriguing.
He did seem like he was denying it a bit too hard up until a minute ago…
Maybe the Jedi can finally tell us what the smoke monster was
I just hope he revamps the opening credits to fit the Lost mold–ten seconds, one-note theme song, let’s get going!
So long as Lumpawaroo is in it, I’m game.
I hope he retcons the first three episodes ala Star Trek. Finally, Jar Jar can get the proper treatment his rich character deserves.
Disney loves money, so I’m all for him remaking the prequel trilogy. And by “remake” I mean change completely in every way.
olivia from fringe needs to be a jedi stat!
Have Brad Bird finish the third Trek movie, and then bring him in to do the second or third Star Wars.
H’mm. Josh Holloway as Han Solo? I could handle that. Evangeline Lilly can be Jabba.
Kind of a fun historical turnabout. The popularity of 1977 Star Wars was the ONLY reason 1979 Star Trek got made. Now, to whip up the fanboy frenzy, Next-gen Star Wars hires the Star Trek guy. ……I guess it wasn’t THAT fun of a historical turnabout.
JJ abrams and Tom Cruise can both cameo as Ewoks for all I care, as long as JJ abrams directs my expectations are higher than Carrie Anne Fisher. (nerd burn)
Impotent Neckbearded Fanboy Rage: ENGAGE!
Somewhere out there, is a picture of JJ Abram’s looking at the camera pointing at Tom Cruise, who is looking at a camera to his left pointing back at JJ.
I hate this. Only because I’m a huge Abrams fan and would rather him not waste time on something that I have a feeling he won’t even be able to make more than mediocre.
Most Lost freaks said the exact same thing about Star Trek, and that was by all accounts excellent.
that’s true, but i feel like he might not have much control over this thing at all. i don’t know, i’d rather him just alternate non-franchise smaller projects between directing every huge Star Trek film until he dies.
Yeah, but Disney tends to put out consistently well done stuff. If it were still just Lucasfilm, and George was driving the bus, I would completely agree.
this news has effectively ruined twitter. It’s nonstop fanboy/lens flare jokes right now.
Does everyone really understand whats happened here? This man has taken control of the nerd-verse from both ends. He is the Alpha and the Omega.
Joss Whedon just gave you the finger from behind a comic book.
This is fine. But the moment Luke sits down with his adolescent son to have an extended length melancholy talk about his late mother while a sweet CGI monster is doing something cooler and far more interesting over in a different scene I’m walking out.
I thought it was JJ Abrams directing, not Bryan Singer.
Hurley ate first.
I’m excited. I didn’t like Star Trek TOS or their movies until JJ took a hold of it and remade it in his image. I’m hoping to see something like that here – a new direction for something I love but has been abused. If it’s as cool as what the Clone Wars has turned into, I’m sold.
This could easily go either way. I’m gonna lean towards cautious optimism. As long as Lindelof isnt involved in the script, we’re good.
I wanna be snarky about this because the internet has almost ruined Star Wars with overexposure, but this is a great development. Especially with the script being written by the guy who wrote for the Toy Story movies. I just wish Lucasfilm had been sold before 2008. RIP Indy.
I’m now more convinced than ever that he is a traveler from the future.
Oh oooh! I hope the plot is totally incomprehensible like the pirates movies so I can stop giving a fuck after the second one!
You guys are missing the big picture here. They’re obviously setting the table for a mind-blowing SW/ST crossover trilogy!
Prediction: 7 will surpass expectations, because they are currently so incredibly low. 8 will be milquetoast to keep the merch machine healthy. And by 9 they will have cast Tom Cruise as the King of the Ewoks. You can trust me, I have a business degree.
As a side note, anyone remember when Disney used to make cartoons?
Like Frankenweenie? And Wreck-It Ralph? And everything Pixar? And the myriad TV shows and direct to DVD animation they produce?
Yes. Yes, I remember when they used to make cartoons as if it were yesterday …
I think those first three things you listed are not what he considers cartoons.
Where does this leave Matthew Vaughn? Go back to Days of Future Past as director / exec producer? WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON AND DOES ANYONE CARE?!?
Does anyone else think that Star Wars is the very film franchise that needs a gritty reboot™? Episodes 1 – 3 f’d up everything for 4 – 6, and probably will tarnish 7 and beyond.
I reckon reboot, not at Ep. 1, but further back into the past (e.g. the formation of the Jedi Council and how they purged most of the Sith – or something to that effect). Do it with quality, and Disney sets up a new universe (than can still tie into the existing movies, or write over parts of them).
Typing that, I just realized that that sounds a lot like Star Trek. Perhaps that’s the reason JJ may be hired, and maybe Ep. 7 is Ep. 0? Maybe.
They should hire Werner herzog for the next movie and have it just be an exposé of r2d2 and how he settles into life as a droid becoming obsolete and fatigued from battle and coming to grips with decommission
He could talk behind the scenes about the stupidity of life forms seduced by the dark side and how gungans are susceptible to the jedi mind trick.
“Und ven I vas showink ze projection of ze Princess, askink for help from ze old Jedi master Obi Van Kenobi, it vas like a projekshun uff mein own soul, vich died slowly in zat moment. For I kame to ze realizashun zat my existensse vas merely az intergalatik video projektor, und assistant to ze sad klown Z3P0, ze android vit ze intenze bumbling shtupidity of ze cheecken.”
I have never watched Lost and if you tell me that I should I will slap you with a dueling glove.
Put me in the camp of those who, as a child of 70s, go to watch ALL the good movies in the theater (Star Wars, narrated Blade Runner — which *is* better than that new, improved unicorn shit, Akira, Raiders, Aliens [*fuck* yeah!], Conan the Barbarian, Wrath of Khan, The Road Warrior, etc) ….and I’m here to tell you that, based upon the Star Trek reboot, I have almost zero hope for the new SW franchise.
“Star Trek” was simply a bad movie which somehow got away with looking average in comparison to all the shit we’ve become accustomed to in the last twenty years. The casting (aside from Spock) was uninspired, the plot and writing stupid, the Romulans less intimidating than during the first half of Nemesis (the last half of that film was moronic), and the bad guy space-ship one of those ridiculous affairs with railingless walkways next to bottomless shafts (which exist for no reason other than for red-shirts and bad guys to fall down)…and the aforementioned shaky-cam: a single second of which is enough to dock a rating star in my book.
– “Lucasfilm Chief Kathleen Kennedy…” …yeah, and that’s a problem. While there are many hits in her early career, her films of the last fifteen years are relentlessly mediocre (aside from the magnificent Persepolis, which I suspect she had very little to input into the actual making of).
What does the SW franchise needs to breath some fresh air into it? ….grab everybody from the Harry Potter production teams (hey: they’re out of work! snag ‘em!). While I had quibbles about the acting ability of the kids, the film were otherwise well put together (particularly Prisoner of Azkaban).
Fantasy and space movies have a lot in common; and the defining characteristic of the good ones is maintaining suspension of disbelief (Aliens holds the gold-standard title here). Anything remotely self-referential or slap-sticky (in a film which *isn’t* a straight-up comedy like Galaxy Quest) immediately kills the mood, resulting in dreck like the SW prequels.
A word of cameras: STOP MOVING THE FUCKING THINGS SO MUCH (and I’m only referring to shaky-cam). — Are you tired of overhead tracking shots? Spin-around-the-characters carousel? sure am. Classic case: the “dragon’s eye cam” which infested the LOTR trilogy whenever the fellowship was walking along some ridge accompanied by a relentlessly repetitive horn fanfare. I.e., there was no logical reason for the POV throughout those films. In the Potter films, whenever there’s dragon’s-eye-cam, Harry is at least *on* a freaking dragon (or griffon, or broom, or flying car, etc). Contrast to the bolt-solid vantage point when the Reliant got blown apart in The Wrath of Khan, and slowly tumbled spewing sparking bits — I loved this about that film: the spaceships had actual “weight”, and were lumbering behemoths which behaved in accordance with their size (you also got it in the original SW trilogy but not the prequels or next-Gen Trek films). If it were a Transformer movie, the camera would zoom in, over and around the Reliant as it fell apart, focusing in loving detail on each and every tumbling hit (a la Armageddon)….and it would suck.
Okay, I’ll say it.
You kids get off my lawn!
In the past 15 years, Kennedy has given us The Sixth Sense, Jurassic Park 3, Munich, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly and others.
Old guys (me being one) that whine about how terrible movies have been for the past 20 years (or whatever) clearly don’t go to the right movies.
Movies are fine. Star Wars is fine. Nothing to worry about here.
Fuck JJ Abrams.
Awwww yeeeaa
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Well done.
it took me a second, but that was fantastic.
Should have been Terry Gilliam.
Damn straight.
I am both an old person and a huge fan of Star Trek, but this makes me cry. Disney and Abrams? Oh whatever could possibly go wrong? Lucas is a big fat whore.
Great, now Star Wars fans can know the pain some of us have been suffering since 09.
The start of filming about a year from now should coincide perfectly with Lindsay Lohan’s dcline such that she will be perfectly cast as one of Jar-Jar’s descendants. Or some other wrinkly alien with fatty neck folds.