It is well known that when George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney and it was revealed that a new STAR WARS trilogy was in the works, Lucas would continue on as a creative consultant for the universe he helped create. During an interview following a Daytime Emmy win for recently cancelled STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, Lucas admits that he has not been contacted regarding the new J.J. Abrams helmed EPISODE 7. Now of course as Lucas mentioned in the interview, it is entirely possible that Abrams has been preoccupied with his other huge sci-fi franchise STAR TREK, but it does lead one to wonder how much influence Lucas will have on the new trilogy. For many fans, the extent of Lucas's involvement will work to either the film's benefit or detriment. EPISODE 7 is to begin shooting next year and slated for 2015 release.