Star Wars Episode VII Script is Finished

In a new conversation with The Wrap, Star Wars Episode VII director J.J. Abrams has revealed that the script for the film, which was rewritten by Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan after a first draft from Michael Arndt, is complete and ready to shoot. The conversation took place at the Television Critics' Association, where Abrams is appearing in support of Believe, the series hes' developing with Gravity director and once-rumored Star Wars Episode VII directorial candidate Alfonso Cuaron. Arndt, the Academy Award-winning writer behind Little Miss Sunshine and Toy Story 3, reportedly broke with Abrams on the project after it became clear that the two had wildly different visions for the film. Arndt wanted Star Wars Episode VII to focus on the next generation of Jedi, giving the offspring of the Skywalker and Solo clans a running start into their own trilogy, while Abrams reportedly wanted Luke, Leia and Han to have a final hurrah as the central focus of the film before passing the lightsabers to the kids. Kasdan, who was already on board with Lucasfilm, reportedly developing a Boba Fett spinoff film, joined Abrams to punch up the shooting script. He's got a long history with Lucasfilm, having written The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Return of the Jedi. He's also a filmmaker in his own right, having written and directed films like The Big Chill, Silverado, Wyatt Earp and Dreamcatcher. Even before Arndt jumped ship, it seemed as though they were having a hard time getting a final script together; the group had reportedly asked Disney to delay the film until 2016 and, while the studio said no, they did schedule the date in mid-December rather than May, the franchise's usual stomping grounds.