In a move that deviates from the current plan of premiering Star Wars saga films at the end of the year, Disney has announced that they are moving up the release date of Star Wars Episode IX to the summer along with release dates from other huge Disney releases.
Star Wars Episode IX
The Colin Trevorrow (Jurassic World) helmed sequel will premiere May 24, 2019. There is very little known about the story and script for the film, but Lucasfilm and Disney have decided to release the film in the summer to take it back to its summer blockbuster roots. The previous films opened during the summer while the current iteration of Star Wars films have opened in December. While there is no other news surrounding the production, it was confirmed by Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy that Carrie Fisher’s Leia will not appear in Episode IX. How they resolve her character will be a question that fans will be asking right up until the premiere of The Last Jedi.
The Lion King
The live action version of the 1994 hit animated musical will be released after Star Wars on July 19, 2019 (A slot previously held by a new Indiana Jones film.). The film, directed by John Favreau (The Jungle Book) has a lot to live up to with the director addressing some of those concerns at the Tribeca Film Festival. According to the director:
When you’re directing, you have to love [what you’re making]. You have to love it to the point of obsession. I have to live, breathe, sleep it, dream it. If I’m going to do my best work, I need to be completely immersed… you look at the material and you get inspired, and then try to update it for our time. With the Disney stuff, people know even more… With Lion King, people really know [the original], and they grew up with it and it has emotional impact. I think about what I remember about The Lion King.
With the cast still assembling, it will be interesting to see what the final product will look like.
Frozen 2
There is, at this point, no news about the production of the sequel to the smash hit animated film from 2015. Actress Kristen Bell (Anna) did confirm her participation in the film and confirmed the release date of November 27, 2019. The original film went on to worldwide acclaim and success with a hit soundtrack.
Indiana Jones
The final film on this list has been speculated about for years since the release of the last film Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull in 2008. With no information coming from either Lucasfilm or Stephen Spielberg, everything but the release date of the film on July 10, 2020 is pure speculation. Will Harrison Ford reprise his role as Indiana Jones or will it follow in the footsteps of the upcoming Han Solo film and cast another actor to play the archeologist at a different time?
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