LUCASFILM LOOKING TO SET DOWN IN CHINA

Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy is the latest top U.S. studio executive to make the pilgrimage to China to discuss ways in which the burgeoning Chinese film industry and Hollywood can cooperate to their mutual benefit. At a Beijing symposium, Kennedy noted that China’s film industry is developing faster than any other outside the U.S. and […]

LUCAS CONFIRMS: STAR WARS STARS TO RETURN IN “EPISODE VII”

George Lucas has apparently jumped the gun and disclosed that the three original Star Wars stars, Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) and Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) will reprise their roles in “Episode VII” of the popular franchise. In an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, Lucas first remarked that all three had already been […]

HOW INVOLVED WILL LUCAS BE IN NEW STAR WARS TRILOGY?

First, there were those reports that George Lucas had developed an outline for a new Star Wars trilogy (Episodes 7, 8, and 9). Then there were reports that he had met with the original Star Wars stars to see if they would be interested in playing older versions of their characters in the new films. […]

MARK HAMILL UNSURE ABOUT STAR WARS RETURN

While it had appeared from earlier statements that all of the original Star Wars members had been lined up by George Lucas to return to their roles for Episode 7, Mark Hamill has told E! News that he is undecided about doing so. Apparently speaking for the other costars of the original trilogy (or perhaps […]

DISNEY BUYS LUCASFILM; MORE STAR WARS MOVIES COMING

In an announcement that surprised — if not astonished — the movie industry, the Walt Disney Co. announced today (Tuesday) that it has acquired George Lucas’s Lucasfilm LTD in a stock-and-cash deal worth $4.05 billion. The deal calls for the unit, which will be headed by longtime Lucas collaborator Kathleen Kennedy, to roll out at […]

DARTH VADER STARS IN BRITISH COMMERCIAL

In what it described as a “licensing partnership” with Lucasfilm, the British consumer-electronics retail group Dixon’s is launching a multimillion-pound marketing campaign, the centerpiece of which is a 40-second commercial starring Darth Vader. The spot, due to air for the first time on Saturday during The X Factor on ITV, spoofs a scene in Star […]

CONFIRMED: STAR WARS BEING CONVERTED TO 3D

George Lucas’s Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) special-effects unit has begun work on converting Star Wars: Episode 1: The Phantom Menace to 3D but does not expect to release it for two more years, the Los Angeles Times reported today (Wednesday). The newspaper said that it had obtained a press release that corporate parent LucasFilm […]

THE FORCE WON’T BE WITH HIM — AND VICE VERSA

David Prowse, the actor wearing the Darth Vader costume in the original Star Wars movies has disclosed that he has been barred from attending “official” Star Wars conventions, including the upcoming Celebration V. Prowse, who has previously been a regular at such conventions — he reportedly donates his fee for appearances and autographs to arthritis […]