Ever since Disney announced a couple weeks ago that they have purchased LucasFilm and will release the long-proposed
Star Wars sequel trilogy, there have been many rumors concerning who will direct
Episode VII (which is targeted for a 2015 release). We previously heard interest from
Iron Man's Jon Favreau in helming the project, with other directors (Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino, Zack Snyder and J.J. Abrams) saying that they won't be directing the film. We can definitely add one more name to the list: Guillermo del Toro (
Pacific Rim,
Hellboy).
Speaking with
Fanhattan Blog, del Toro is asked about the possibility of directing
Star Wars: Episode VII. He says that helming a
Star Wars film is something he doesn't think about (comparing the idea to dating a supermodel), and that he hasn't been approached for the much-coveted gig.
"You know, I saw it on the Internet, but I haven’t approached them, they haven’t formally approached me. I mean, I heard some rumblings, but to me it’s really — I have so many projects to discuss or think about. [For] something that is not a possibility yet, I don’t do that. You know, because I have so many things that I need to catch up with. If this becomes ever a reality, and there’s an approach to do it, I would then think about it, but — it’s like thinking if I want to date a supermodel. I don’t think about these things." And over at the director's fan site,
Del Toro Films, he simply says in reply to some comments,
"No reason to worry." This news isn't surprising, as del Toro has many projects on his plate.
In other
Star Wars news, Colin Trevorrow (
Safety Not Guaranteed) has recently been rumored to be in consideration to direct
Episode VII. On the podcast
Filmmixern.se (many thanks to
Slash Film for the transcription), Trevorrow is asked about these rumors. He refuses to talk in detail about the rumors, but goes on to talk about how he's a
Star Wars fan and is as excited about the new movie as others.
"I have very little to say about it," says Trevorrow.
"Certainly, no specifics about what's going on behind the scenes in the selection of that person [a director]. I think that I can speak as a Star Wars fan, which is important to me. Whoever does do this movie, I think, just needs to have a fundamental understanding of why it's important to us. We come from a generation who grew up with this as children, to us it's almost a belief system. It's harder for people who are older or who were already teenagers when the movie came out to understand how deeply it is our mythology. And there are a bunch of incredible directors who are up for this job… I think whoever gets it will have that fundamental understanding of why Star Wars matters so much to a billion people. It's just incredible. So that’s all I can say about that. I’m equally excited about it. … that’s all you’re gonna get!"
Star Wars: Episode VII recently gained a writer in the form of Oscar-winning scribe Michael Ardnt (
Toy Story 3,
Little Miss Sunshine). With plans to get the film into production by 2014, hopefully Disney will announce a director for the project very soon. Who do you want to direct the next
Star Wars movie(s)?