Sorry, Star Wars fans. You’ll have to wait a few more months for your next fix.
Disney announced on Wednesday that it’s pushing back the release date for the untitled eighth episode of the franchise by half a year from May 26, 2017 to December 15, 2017.
The announcement follows rumors that director Rian Johnson was planning to re-write the script for the new film. The rumor, which stems from the “Meet The Movie Press” podcast, suggests that Johnson wants to re-work his script to take advantage of the success stemming from December’s “The Force Awakens.”
Disney also announced in the press release that it is moving up the release date for its reboot of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” series. “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales” will be released on May 26, 2017.
Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise in 2012 when they purchased Lucasfilm for more than $4 billion. The first Disney-produced “Star Wars” film, “The Force Awakens” was released in December to rave reviews. The J.J. Abrams-directed film has smashed box office records, earning nearly $2 billion since its release.
Alex Hider is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @alexhider.
