Exciting news for ‘Star Wars’ fans! In a Disney shareholder meeting today, Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger announced that ‘Star Wars VIII’ will be in theaters on May 26th  2017 and the first spinoff of the ‘Star Wars’ franchise will be titled ‘Rogue One.’

According to the Star Wars site, ‘Rogue One’ will be directed by Gareth Edwards (‘Godzilla,’ ‘Monsters’) and will be scribed by Oscar nominee Chris Weitz (‘About a Boy,’ ‘Cinderella’) from a story idea by John Knoll. The film will be the first to explore the characters and events “beyond the core the ‘Star Wars’ saga.” The site also confirmed Felicity Jones (‘The Theory of Everything,’ ‘The Amazing Spiderman 2’) will be playing the female lead for the film. ‘Rogue One’ begins filming in London this summer and is slated for a December 26, 2016 release.

As for ‘Star Wars VIII,’ all that is being reported is that the film will be directed and penned by Rian Johnson (‘Looper’) and will be in theater on May 26, 2017, 40 years and 1 day since the release of ‘Star Wars: A New Hope.’ It’s been rumored that Johnson also has the option to direct and write ‘Star Wars IX as well but that has yet to be confirmed.

We’re beyond ecstatic with the news and will be reporting more as it unfolds…