We’ve been getting a pretty steady stream of Star Wars-related announcements over the past few months and once again this week Disney and Lucasfilm have delivered another huge bombshell. Although they have not yet officially confirmed it, it looks as though J.J. Abrams will not be directing the entire new trilogy himself. Instead, Rian Johnson (Brick, Looper) will be taking over the reins on the following film and possibly the one after that as well. It’s definitely a massive undertaking for Johnson, who essentially shot all of his previous films independently and has yet to make a movie with a budget over $30 million.

According to Deadline, Rian Johnson is currently making a deal with Lucasfilm to write and direct Star Wars: Episode VIII and IX. That is disputed somewhat by THR, who claim that he will only be writing the treatment for IX. Either way, it’s the first time we’ve had anyone other than J.J. Abrams mentioned with regards to the core trilogy as opposed to separate standalone films.

We’ve known for a while now that Johnson’s work on Looper made him a hot commodity in Hollywood and a potential candidate for many upcoming blockbusters. He was reportedly under consideration for movies like Masters of the Universe, Thor: The Dark World and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, but it looks like he was probably wise to wait it out. Although I still consider Looper to be a bit of a disappointment overall, I am very excited to see what Johnson can do with this. Do you think Rian Johnson is an inspired choice to continue the Star Wars saga?