8 Nov – Following the announcement that casting calls for "Star Wars: Episode VII" are open, Disney has also announced the official release date of the highly anticipated film in 3D, which will be on 18 December 2015. According to Alan Horn, Disney's chairman, "We're very excited to share the official 2015 release date for "Star Wars: Episode VII", where it will not only anchor the popular holiday film going season but also ensure our extraordinary filmmaking team has the time needed to deliver a sensational picture." A few weeks back, "Toy Story 3" screenwriter Michael Arndt dropped out of "Star Wars: Episode VII", leaving director J.J. Abrams to pick up screenwriting duties together with Lawrence Kasdan, who co-wrote "Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back", and "Star Wars Episode VI: Return Of The Jedi", in order to meet the release date.
In a recent press conference for "Almost Human", Abrams said, "Working with Michael was a wonderful experience and I couldn't be a bigger fan of his or adore him more, He's a wonderful guy and was incredibly helpful in the process. And working with Lawrence Kasdan, especially on a "Star Wars" movie, is unbeatable. It became clear that given the time frame and given the process and the way the thing was going that working with Larry, in this way, was going to get us where we need to be and when we needed to be. That doesn't preclude working with Michael again in the future, at all."