“Star Wars Episode 7” is set as the first movie in a new trilogy that will tell all new original stories. Lucasfilm made an official announcement that the new trilogy won’t be telling the same stories that the Expanded Universe told. We can still expect some elements from the old pulled in to the new, but for the most part all three stories will be completely original. This entails that some characters like Grand Admiral Thrawn and Jacen Solo introduced in “Star Wars” novels, comic books, video games, and TV shows will not be making any appearances in the upcoming pics. EU fans will have a field day with this one no doubt! Hopefully the creative team is on the ball to carry through new and original ideas, only time will tell with “Episode 7″ as the benchmark.
The Expanded Universe is the general term given to stories set in the Star Wars Universe outside of the films, beginning with spin-off novels in the late 70s and continuing up through role-playing games, comics and videogames for several decades.
Check out the important bits from the announcement:
“In order to give maximum creative freedom to the filmmakers and also preserve an element of surprise and discovery for the audience, Star Wars Episodes VII-IX will not tell the same story told in the post-Return of the JediExpanded Universe. While the universe that readers knew is changing, it is not being discarded. Creators of new Star Wars entertainment have full access to the rich content of the Expanded Universe. For example, elements of the EU are included in Star Wars Rebels. The Inquisitor, the Imperial Security Bureau, and Sienar Fleet Systems are story elements in the new animated series, and all these ideas find their origins in roleplaying game material published in the 1980s.”
“Demand for past tales of the Expanded Universe will keep them in print, presented under the new Legends banner. On the screen, the first new canon to appear will be Star Wars Rebels.”
“In print, the first new books to come from this creative collaboration include novels from Del Rey Books. First to be announced, John Jackson Miller is writing a novel that precedes the events of Star Wars Rebels and offers insight into a key character’s backstory, with input directly from executive producers Dave Filoni, Simon Kinberg, and Greg Weisman.”
“And this is just the beginning of a creatively aligned program of Star Wars storytelling created by the collaboration of incredibly talented people united by their love of that galaxy far, far away….”
For those of you not in the know, escapistmagazine.com explains the Expanded Universe to aspiring geeks out there:
“The Expanded Universe is the general term given to stories set in the Star Wars Universe outside of the films, beginning with spin-off novels in the late 70s and continuing up through role-playing games, comics and videogames for several decades. For a time they were widely considered to form an “official/unofficial” canon with the films, and George Lucas even had to officially make certain characters and periods off-limits in order to not muddy the waters during the making of the Prequels.”
Star Wars geeks can expect “Episode 7” to hit theaters on December 18, 2015. Two sequels are set with the first one to follow in 2017, and the second in 2019.
Recent news – Check out our ‘Star Wars Episode 7′ archive
- ‘Star Wars Episode 7’ Script finished, Filming set for May
- Zac Efron “Went and Met with” Disney for ‘Star Wars Episode 7′
- ‘Transformers 4′ Star Jack Reynor cast in ‘Star Wars Episode 7′?
- Adam Driver Close to Signing as Villain in ‘Star Wars Episode 7′
- Carrie Fisher Rumored to Film ‘Star Wars Episode 7′ in London for Six Months
- ‘Star Wars Episode 7′ Identifies Five Actors for the Lead Role
- ‘Star Wars Episode 7′ to Film in May in London, to Take Place 30 Years After ‘Return of Jedi’
