Originally, Star Wars: Episode VIII was slated to be released May 26, 2017 for Memorial Day weekend. However, Disney and Lucasfilm announced Wednesday it has pushed back that release date by seven months to December 15, 2017.
The official Star Wars website notes that “the move follows the extraordinary success of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which was the first Star Wars movie to premiere outside the traditional summer blockbuster window and smashed numerous records.”
The record-breaking Star Wars: The Force Awakens has become the highest-grossing film domestically with $861 million and is the third highest-grossing movie worldwide with a current global total of $1.88 billion.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, the fifth installment in the Pirates franchise will be released on May 26, 2017 instead. It was previously scheduled to be released July 7, 2017. The movie will see the return of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, Geoffrey Rush as Barbossa, and Orlando Bloom as Will Turner.
Rian Johnson will write and direct the eighth episode of Star Wars. J.J. Abrams, who directed Episode VII, will executive produce along with Tom Karnowski and Jason McGatlin. Kathleen Kennedy and Ram Bergman will produce.
The stars of the original film, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Oscar Isaac, will all reprise their roles in the new film. Principal photography for Episode VIII is set to begin next month.
The Star Wars spinoff film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story hits theaters this year on December 16.
