There's still more than a week away from Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, but we may already know which characters are returning for the sequel.
During a press conference held yesterday in Los Angeles, Kathleen Kennedy seemingly confirmed that cast members John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Harrison Ford and Gwendoline Christie will all be returning for director Rian Johnson's still untitled Episode VIII.
When asked by panel moderator Mindy Kaling about how the she and her team were mapping out the franchise's future, Kennedy - who was seated on a couch with the four actors - responded saying:
"We haven't mapped out every single detail yet, but obviously everybody is talking to one another, working together, and that collaboration is I think is what is going to guarantee that everybody has a say in how we move forward with this. And so far it's going great. J.J. [Abrams] and Rian [Johnson] already talk at length, because Rian is about to start shooting Episode VIII - these guys are getting ready to head over in January."
According to multiple sources, Kennedy gave Boyega a pat on the back when she referred to the group as 'these guys', a subtle hint that the foursome will be present when production for Episode VIII begins.
Boyega and Isaac's respective characters, the rouge Stormtrooper Finn and Republic X-Wing Pilot Poe Dameron, have been touted as two-thirds of the new trilogy's cast of heroes together with Daisy Ridley's desert scavenger Rey, so it would make sense for them to return for future instalments.
Prior to this conference, Kennedy already confirmed that Gwendoline Christie's character, the chrome armor-clad Captain Phasma, would return in a feature with the LA Times.
"Kennedy has big plans for Phasma and confirmed that the captain will carry on into the next movie." "She's an important character, a baddie in the best sense of the word." Reads the article.
As for how Ford's Han Solo factors into the future films, we'll just have to wait and see.
