J.J. Abrams to write and direct ‘Star Wars IX’!

Breaking news from Disney this evening: director J.J. Abrams has been confirmed to return to the Star Wars universe. Following the mutually agreed departure of Colin Trevorrow from the project last week Disney has negotiated a deal to bring Abrams back for Star Wars IX.

It is believed that Abrams will be rewriting the script for Star Wars IX as well as directing the project. The script, originally written by Tevorrow and Jack Thorne, will be rewritten by Abrams and Chris Terrio.

An official statement from Disney reads:

J.J. Abrams, who launched a new era of Star Wars with The Force Awakens in 2015, is returning to complete the sequel trilogy as writer and director of Star Wars: Episode IX. Abrams will co-write the film with Chris Terrio.

Star Wars: Episode IX will be produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Michelle Rejwan, Abrams, Bad Robot, and Lucasfilm. “With The Force Awakens, J.J. delivered everything we could have possibly hoped for, and I am so excited that he is coming back to close out this trilogy,” said Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy.

Welcome back J.J!