Lucasfilm and Disney will be releasing a stand-alone "Star Wars" film in December 2016, according to a news release.
"Godzilla" director Gareth Edwards will be bringing writer Gary Whitta's script to the big screen on Dec. 16, 2016. Whitta is responsible for penning the script for "The Book of Eli" starring Denzel Washington and Mila Kunis, as well as working on Telltale Games adaptation of "The Walking Dead."
"Ever since I saw Star Wars I knew exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life -- join the Rebel Alliance! I could not be more excited and honored to go on this mission with Lucasfilm," Edwards said in a statement.
Whitta is also a "Star Wars" fan and still cannot believe he was chosen to pen the script.
"From the moment I first saw the original movie as a wide-eyed kid, Star Wars has been the single most profound inspiration to my imagination and to my career as a writer," Whitta said in a statement. "It is deeply special to me, so to be given the opportunity to contribute to its ongoing legacy, especially in collaboration with a film-maker as talented as Gareth, is literally a dream come true. I'm still pinching myself."
In other "Star Wars" news, director J.J. Abrams and the rest of the "Star Wars Episode 7" crew are giving fans a chance to be a part of the film. "Star Wars" has partnered with UNICEF, an organization that helps children by providing medical care worldwide, to launch an initiative to continue to help kids by researching solutions for the "world's biggest problems."
"We're so great for all the 'Star Wars' fans out there for their support and their patience that we would like to invite you to be part of the fun here. We want to put you in the movie," Abrams said in a video about the cause. "...Starting today, we're going to give you a chance to win a trip to be in the movie. That means you get to come to London while we're shooting the movie mostly in Pinewood Studios."
"You get to meet the cast, go behind the scenes and see the whole movie making process. But more than that, we'll put you in hair and makeup and wardrobe and you'll actually get to be in the movie. That's right, you'll be in 'Star Wars.'"
You can read more about the "Star Wars" and UNICEF initiative here.
