Get ready for a whole lot of Star Wars, folks.  Disney took the stage today for its presentation at CinemaCon—a convention for theater owners—in Las Vegas, and the studio made the bold announcement that it is planning on releasing a new Star Wars film into theaters every summer starting with 2015’s Star Wars: Episode VII.  The studio will alternate every other year with an “Episode” film and a standalone film, and based on previous rumors there certainly won’t be a lack of characters for them to mine.  Hit the jump for more.

With the release of Star Trek Into Darkness only a couple of months away, director J.J. Abrams is about to be hounded by countless questions about Star Wars: Episode VII as he starts to make the Trek press rounds.  The filmmaker has thus far been fairly quiet with regards to him taking the helm of the first pic in a new trilogy of Star Wars movies, but he recently opened up to Empire during what appears to be a wide-ranging interview.

Just yesterday we shared his comments with the magazine about his scrapped Superman script Flyby and how it relates to this summer’s Man of Steel, and now the outlet has unveiled what Abrams had to say about approaching the new Star Wars film as a massive fan and the similarities with his take on Star Trek.  Hit the jump to read on.

Another day, another semi-confirmation of a Star Wars return for an actor from the original trilogy.  Despite Joss Whedon’s thoughts on the matter, it seems inevitable now that Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford will be reprising their roles from the original Star Wars trilogy in the J.J. Abrams-helmed Episode VII.  Hamill previously said the trio was in talks, Fisher has outright confirmed that she’ll be back, and George Lucas said it’s pretty much a done deal.  Now you can add the final piece of the puzzle to the pile, as Harrison Ford has essentially confirmed that they’ll all be back saying, “I think it’s happening.”  Hit the jump for more.

When it comes to the new Star Wars films, everybody has an opinion.  Of course it’s kind of hard to please absolutely everyone when it comes to arguably the most popular film franchise of all time, but ever since Disney announced that a new trilogy was on the way, fans have been speculating and debating like crazy over episodes 7, 8, and 9.  J.J. Abrams has officially been tapped to bring the first film to fruition and screenwriter Michael Arndt is currently working on the script, but unsurprisingly Disney and Lucasfilm have remained mum with regards to story details.

With a targeted 2015 release date looming, some minor pieces of info regarding the new trilogy have been surfacing here and there, and the biggest news nugget concerning Episode VII is undoubtedly the fact that Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford are reportedly in discussions to reprise their characters in the new film.  Fans seem to be split on whether it’s a good idea to be revisiting old characters in the new trilogy, but one wildly popular filmmaker recently took sides in the debate as The Avengers director Joss Whedon says he wouldn’t be looking to the past in Episode VII if it were up to him.  Hit the jump for Whedon’s full thoughts on the subject.

Over the past month, we’ve heard various stories about the involvement of Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford for J.J. Abrams‘ Star Wars: Episode VII.  Ford was reportedly on board, but then another report said that contract signings were still a ways off.  Then Hamill said they were in talks, but nothing had been signed.  Yesterday, Fisher confirmed she would return to play Princess Leia.  Any way you slice it, it looks like the characters are in the script for the new movie, and the only question is when it will be declared official that the trio of actors are reprising their roles.

Your trust in George Lucas may have been shaken by the prequels, but you can still probably take his word when it comes to the business side of things even though he’s not actively involved in the new trilogy.  Hit the jump for what he had to say about Hamill, Fisher, and Ford’s return.

The cards for a Star Wars cast reunion look to be falling into place.  Ever since the announcement that Disney was moving forward with a new Star Wars trilogy, rumors have swirled regarding the involvement of the original trilogy’s cast members.  Multiple reports have popped up claiming that Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford are eyeing a return to the series, and the subsequent denials/clarifications/etc. have made it clear that deals are likely being worked out.  Now we have a firm clarification straight from the source, as Carrie Fisher has confirmed that she will appear in director J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: Episode: VII.  Hit the jump for more.

I’m opening myself up to complete public failure here, but in the spirit of Oscar weekend I thought it might be fun to share with peers and readers alike my picks for tomorrow’s 85th Academy Awards. Worst case scenario, I figure, is that my picks are so woefully off base that I’m quickly offered a well-compensated position within the Republican Party as a polling analyst. High hopes, I know, but ultimately it’s all in the name of fun. Here’s to hoping you the reader will enjoy comparing your predictions against my own and sleeping better at night as a result of your superior Oscar guessing power.

My half-witted Oscar picks aside, this week’s edition features category previews plus Adam and Matt’s own predictions, Snitch interviews with Dwayne Johnson and more, a character guide to Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, a roundup of recent Star Wars: Episode VII talk, and Sony’s PlayStation 4 announcement. Something that resembles a brief recap and link to each is starved for your attention after the jump.

In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Mark Hamill spoke at length regarding his involvement with Star Wars: Episode VII.  Yesterday, Showbiz 411 reported that Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford were all set to return, although an earlier report said a deal with Ford wouldn’t be closed for weeks or possibly months.  In this case, it’s best to go straight to the source, and Hamill confirmed his earlier comments that George Lucas wanted to know if they were interested, and that the filmmakers have been talking to them.  Lucas also told Hamill that if they didn’t want to do the sequels, “they wouldn’t cast another actor in our parts; they would write us out.”  And on that day, George Lucas finally did something right again.  Hamill went on to say, “I can tell you right away that we haven’t signed any contracts. We’re in the stage where they want us to go in and meet with Michael Arndt, who is the writer, and Kathleen Kennedy, who is going to run Lucasfilm.”  Hamill added “Both have had meetings set that were postponed — on their end, not mine. They’re more busy than I am.”

Hit the jump for much more including what Hamill assumes will happen with the characters, other actors he’d like to see return, and the visual style of the sequels.

Another day, another Star Wars rumor.  As anticipation for Disney and Lucasfilm’s upcoming Star Wars: Episode VII continues to rise, fans are clamoring for every tiny bit of information concerning the new trilogy.  Firm details are incredibly scarce at the moment, and things will likely stay that way for some time now that “Mystery Man” J.J. Abrams has officially signed on to direct Episode VII.  The most recent unconfirmed rumor concerning the film states that Harrison Ford is in talks to reprise his role as Han Solo, and now a new rumor has surfaced that suggests Solo will be joined by his pals Luke and Leia, as Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher may or may not be returning in a storyline that focuses on the trio’s children.  Hit the jump for more.

With the new Star Wars trilogy that Disney and Lucasfilm are developing, there appears to be a serious changing of the guard taking place behind the scenes.  Series creator/shepherd George Lucas vacated his spot at the top of Lucasfilm and is now acting in a consulting capacity on the new films, and prequel trilogy producer Rick McCallum has also retired from the company, leaving Kathleen Kennedy in charge as the new Lucasfilm president and producer of the new Star Wars trilogy.

With J.J. Abrams set to direct at least the first film, Star Wars: Episode VII, wheels are in motion to bring brand new Star Wars stories to a whole new generation of fans, but it appears that at least one creative stalwart from the previous films might have a more heavy hand in the new trilogy: composer John Williams.  Hit the jump to see what Williams had to say about possibly scoring the new Star Wars films.

In November, we reported that Harrison Ford was open to returning for Star Wars: Episode VII.  Today, we’ve learned that the scruffy nerdherder Han Solo will likely appear in the upcoming, long-awaited sequel.  This casting clues us in to at least a few details about the script.  First, at some point we have to see what takes place about 35 years after Return of the Jedi.  It doesn’t mean the film will begin or take place during that time, and Han Solo’s appearance may be a flashback, but if I recall correctly, there wasn’t a single flashback in any of the previous Star Wars films.  The most you got was a recording of events that had already happened.

Hit the jump for more.  Ford will be seen later this year in the Jackie Robinson biopic 42, the thriller Paranoia, and the adaptation of Ender’s Game. [Update: Trusted reporter Geoff Boucher now says that this is far from a done deal. More after the jump.]

We’ve got a few smaller bits of Star Trek-related goodies to share this evening.  Two new images from director J.J. Abrams’ sequel Star Trek Into Darkness have landed online, giving us new looks at Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) as well as Kirk and the villainous John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch).  Speaking of villainy, following numerous back and forth reports and rumors regarding the nature of Cumberbatch’s character, Into Darkness star Alice Eve recently spoke up to claim that Cumberbatch is “not playing Khan.”

Moreover, Simon Pegg also recently made a few headlines with some red carpet comments, as he spoke about the prospect of Abrams returning to direct Star Trek 3 in lieu of the filmmaker’s impending Star Wars: Episode VII duties.  Hit the jump to read on.

We’ll dedicate more time to this topic after the jump, but in just a few sentences I want to share a quick thought I had while watching Netflix’s House of Cards last weekend. It’s not just that I think the show is great. When you involve talents like Kevin Spacey and David Fincher, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where quality work is in short supply. It’s that this level of material was birthed by and is only consumed via the Internet. I’ve been in debates where the question was whether or not the web would foster an age of amateurs. A future in which the training and dedication required to further perfect one’s craft would fall by the wayside leaving audiences with less than stellar work produced by those made lazy by the eased production and distribution technologies afforded by the Internet. While the fact that I’m writing to a considerable audience today via this site is evidence to that very argument, the overall quality of HOC is a strong rebuttal against those concerned about the quality of entertainment work in a digital age.

All thinking out loud aside, this week’s Top 5 features an editorial response to Disney’s announcement that Star Wars spinoff films are in the works, Side Effects interviews with Steven Soderbergh and more, a word about Hulk’s movie future, Matt’s editorial on Netflix and the affect time shifting has on viewing habits, and the latest news out of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 camp. As you’re probably expecting, a brief recap and link to each waits after the jump.

With screenwriters Lawrence Kasdan and Simon Kinberg set to consult on Star Wars: Episode VII and penning the new standalone films, there’s a good chance the writing duo already has some points of continuity in mind.  Speaking of continuity, if Yoda is to be involved in either the sequel trilogy (doubtful, unless he’s in hologram form) or even a possible spin-off, Frank Oz has pledged his interest in returning to voice the fan-favorite Jedi master.  All three creative types recently spoke about their work on the upcoming films.  Hit the jump to see what they had to say.

While everyone’s got a case of the Space Crazies thanks to the latest Star Wars spin-off news, we figured we might as well pass along the latest casting rumor for Star Wars Episode VII.  Word has it that John Noble (Fringe) is circling a role as a villain in the J.J. Abrams-directed picture that will kick-start a new trilogy.  This rumor was started by an Australian morning radio DJ in Melbourne with “a reliable source.”  Good enough for me!  Noble has the skills (and the jowls) to pull off a convincing hooded Sith lord or scheming member of the Senate and has an Abrams connection through Fringe, but I think we’ll wait to hear from a more reliable source.

In other news, hit the jump to see some scrapped concept art for a young Han Solo who was intended to appear in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.