J.J. Abrams to Direct New Star Wars: Report

J.J. Abrams will direct the next Star Wars film for Disney, a source with knowledge of the much-anticipated production told the Wrap.

Interestingly enough, Abrams toldEntertainment Weeklyback in November that he wasnt going to direct the new series and would opt instead to focus on his original material. Star Wars was the first movie that blew my mind in that way; it didnt matter how they did any of it because it was all so overwhelmingly and entirely great, said Abrams at the time. It was funny and romantic and scary and compelling and the visual effects just served the characters and story. It galvanized for me, not for what was exciting about how movies were made, but rather for what movies were capable of.

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Rumors about who would helm the franchise have been swirling ever sinceDisney bought George Lucas Lucasfilm Ltd.for $40.5 billion and immediately started planning another trilogy in the famed saga. According to another source, Ben Affleck was also in talks to direct the new film; recently, directors such as Guillermo del Toro, Steven Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino were asked if they would take the gig.The screenplay is currently being penned by Oscar-winning writer Michael Arndt (Little Miss Sunshine,Toy Story 3).

Abrams is currently gearing up for the release of the second installment of his Star Trek reboot, Into Darkness, which arrives in theaters on May 17th. It was also revealed yesterday that Abrams is preparing to make a Lance Armstrong biopic that covers the cyclists cancer recovery, record-breaking Tour de France championship run and the doping allegations he finally admitted to during an interview with Oprah.