Disney Purchases Lucasfilm And Plans to Prolong Star Wars Franchise With New Film

Disney Purchases Lucasfilm And Plans to Prolong Star Wars Franchise With New Film

Disney have purchased Lucasfilm for $4.05b and have confirmed a new Star Wars film, which, if all goes to plan, will be hitting cinemas in 2015, Sky News reports.

It's possibly the day every sci-fi fan was dreading; Disney buys Lucasfilm will read more like 'Disney ruins Star Wars' to most aficionados of the franchise. Every film, apart from the latter half of the trilogy, which confusingly (for non-geeks) was made before the latter three, has been unsuccessful in recreating the success of the 70's and 80's. "Lucasfilm reflects the extraordinary passion, vision, and storytelling of its founder, George Lucas," said Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. "This transaction combines a world-class portfolio of content including Star Wars, one of the greatest family entertainment franchises of all time, with Disney's unique and unparalleled creativity across multiple platforms, businesses, and markets to generate sustained growth and drive significant long-term value."

George Lucas launched Lucasfilm in 1971 and the first Star Wars film was released in 1977. "For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next," Lucas said. "I've always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime." Lucas will stay on as creative consultant for the new set of Star Wars films, which, starting in 2015 will be released every few years.