I found this FAQ while going through some old files. I'm posting the entire thing because it's just too much fun to read, now that Episode III has at last completed the prequel cycle.

Note: I didn't change anything, but I highlighted in bold the parts that now seem particularly funny or weird.

________________. ___ .______
/ | / \ | _ \
| (-----| |----`/ ^ \ | |_) |
\ \ | | / /_\ \ | /
.-----) | | | / _____ \ | |\ \-------.
|________/ |__| /__/ \__\| _| `.________|
____ __ ____ ___ .______ ________.
\ \ / \ / / / \ | _ \ / |
\ \/ \/ / / ^ \ | |_) || (-----`
\ / / /_\ \ | / \ \
\ /\ / / _____ \ | |\ \---) |
\__/ \__/ /__/ \__\|__| `._______/

The New Star Wars Films FAQ V 1.9

Compiled by Aditya Sood

12/1/94

This FAQ deals with questions arising from George Lucas's recent
announcement that he will indeed continue the most popular film saga of
all time.

Information for this FAQ comes from a wide range of sources, including
publications such as The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Time, Newsweek
and others; television shows such as Entertainment Tonight and from
contributors on the net, including Skip Shaytovich, Chip Cataldo,
Galandro (keeper of the rec.arts.sf.starwars FAQ) and many others.
Any answer that is either speculative or from any source that is not
either print media or television will be noted by an asterisk (*)

****IMPORTANT****

While I'm very keen that as many Star Wars fans as possible see this,
and know this information, I'd appreciate it if you do not post this
FAQ anywhere without asking me first. If you ask me, I will most
undoubtedly say yes, but I'd just like to know where the FAQ is being
posted. And please keep my name attached to this FAQ. I'm not
interested in fame and fortune (well, actually I am...just not with
this FAQ.. But, I have put quite a bit of time into compiling this.


A list of places this FAQ may be posted follows. If you see this FAQ
someplace that is not on the list before, please e-mail me
(asood@pomona.edu)

This FAQ may not be reposted in any altered form, without permission of
the author.

Thanks,
Aditya Sood

This FAQ may be posted on:

rec.arts.sf.starwars
rec.arts.movies
rec.arts.sf.movies
rec.answers
alt.cult-movies
alt.video.laserdisc
alt.movies.spielberg
The Prism BBS
Fidonet Star Wars Echo
Star Wars WWW page
http://stwing.resnet.upenn.edu:8001/~jruspini/starwars.html

Changes from previous versions:

Version 1.0 (2/14/94):
Version 1.0.1 (2/15/94):
Added question 11a: Has John Williams retired?
Appended questions 1, 4, 5, 8
Version 1.1 (2/22/94):
Appended questions 5, 12, 13, 99
Added questionÊ16: Will 20th Century Fox distribute the new films?
Version 1.2 (3/7/94)
Appended questions 1, 1a, 8, 11a, 13, 16, 99
Version 1.3 (4/6/94)
Appended questions 5, 11a, 12, 12b, 14, 99
Version 1.4 (5/1/94)
Appended questions 4
Added question 17: Was there a "Clone Wars" trailer before "The
Paper"?
Version 1.5 (5/28/94)
Added question 18: Will the original Star Wars films be re-released?
Version 1.6 (6/30/94)
Appended questions 1a, 7, 12b, 16, 99
Version 1.7 (8/25/94)
Added question 7c: I heard that Kenneth Branagh would be playing
Obi-Wan Kenobi in the new movies, is that true?
Added question 12c: I heard Peter Cushing is dead, is that true?
Added question 19: Have the Star Wars films begun production yet?
Added question 98: What other projects are Lucasfilm working on?
Appended questions: 1, 4, 8, 99
Version 1.8 (10/4/94)
Appended questions: 1, 1a, 7c, 98, 99
Added question 20: Who is writing the new Star Wars films?
Version 1.9 (12/1/94)
Appended questions: 1, 1a, 8, 13, 16, 17, 19, 20, 98
Reordered questions: 16, 17 and 18.
Added question 21: What aspect ratio will the new films be shot in?

A word of warning. Most of these questions don't have answers just
yet. So please be patient. And if you have any answers or questions
that you would like to add, please send mail to me at
"asood@pomona.claremont.edu"

Also, while I am very keen that this FAQ is seen by as many Star Wars
fans as possible, please ask me before you post this FAQ to any other
mailing lists. I have spent quite a bit of time on this list, and
would appreciate my name remaining attached to it. Thanks.

Thanks.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Questions:

1. Is George Lucas gonna do any more Star Wars movies.

Answer: Yes, he is! This has been confirmed in print in the October
4th, 1993 issue of Variety, as well as a number of other sources
including George Lucas himself in an interview with Leonard Maltin on
Entertainment Tonight, back in November 1993. Lucas confirmed this
again, in an interview with TV Guide (10/8/94) LucasArts says that the
first film will go into production "in about a year." People have
estimated that this could be as early as January or February of 1995.
A more firm start date should be known in the next three months. On
October 10th. 1994, Lucas said, in an interview with Channel 13 in Los
Angeles that it takes "about a year to write these scripts, a year to
prep. a year to shoot and six months for post-production." Assuming
that the scripts have been in the writing stage for awhile now
(although Lucas may have had limited involvement, other than preparing
the treatments), and given that ILM has already stated that some test
reels for the projects have been done (see below), production should
start within a year.


1a. When are they coming?

Answer (*): In the past few weeks, it has become more and more
apparent that the first new Star Wars film will be released in 1998,
rather than 1997.

In the "Film Shorts" column of the November 12th, 1994 Hollywood
Reporter said the following: "Here's George Lucas' plan for the three
prequels to the "Star Wars" films: 'I'll take a year to write them, a
year to prepare them, and a year to shoot them. And I'll shoot them
all at once....Lucas has said that he hopes to have the first film in
the new trilogy out by 1998 or 1999."

I figure that, in keeping with the pattern of releasing Star Wars films
on the Wednesday before the Memorial Day weekend, the first film should
be released either on Wednesday, May 20th, 1998 (1,266 days away, at
the time of this writing.)

The May 25th 1997 date reported by some people is incorrect, since that
is a Sunday. True, May 25th is the ACTUAL 20th anniversary of the
release of the original Star Wars, but Lucas (nor anyone else) would
not release a film on a Sunday. The reason is that the films would
obviously make less money during its opening weekend. One of the
reasons that releasing a movie on the Wednesday before Memorial Day
makes so much sense is that it effectively makes the opening weekend
period last SIX days (Wednesday-Monday, Memorial Day), rather than the
normal three. Thereby doubling the first weekend gross. Releasing a
movie on the Sunday before Memorial Day would cut that number to two,
not to mention the fact that it would eliminate the Friday and Saturday
business--the most profitable of the whole week.


2. Are they going to be sequels?

Answer: No, these new movies PRECEDE the trilogy that we've seen (Star
Wars: A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.)
According to George Lucas, the first film takes place 40 (forty) years
before Star Wars: A New Hope.


2a. What's a "pre-quel"?

Answer: A pre-quel is the opposite of a sequel, it predates the film
that it comes after. An example of a prequel is Indiana Jones and the
Temple of Doom, which while it was made three years after Raiders of
the Lost Ark, actually takes place a year before.


3. I just read three books by Timothy Zahn, are these the new movies?

Answer: No. Not only are they obviously not the new movies (I-III),
they are not Episodes VII-IX either. They are merely a "continuation
of the Star Wars universe", and George Lucas reserves all rights to
blow away anything that Zahn says in any of Lucas's future work.


4. So will [insert my favorite character] be in the films?

Answer: Probably not, unless your favorite character is Obi-Wan
Kenobi, Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker, Yoda, The Emperor, R2-D2 or
C-3PO, as they are the only characters that could reasonably be in the
new trilogy. (Mon Mothma could be in the new films, but I have yet to
meet someone whose favorite character is Mon Mothma.) I guess Grand
Moff Tarkin, or any of the minor generals and admirals we see in the
background (i.e. Admiral Tagge, Motti, General Dodonna, Madine, etc.)
could be in the new films as well. There is a speculative rumor that
Boba Fett has some sort of importance in the new films, but that is
unconfirmed. Rumor has it that assassin droid IG-88 may play a role in
the new movies.


5. What are the new movies gonna be about?

Answer: Good question. Lucas has said that the movies will focus on
Obi-Wan Kenobi, as the original trilogy focused on Luke Skywalker.
Other than that, there is no definitive answer, but the most obvious
topics would be: The Clone Wars, The Rise of the Emperor, The Fall of
the Republic, The relationship of Anakin and his wife and the events
that lead to Anakin Skywalker's conversion to the Dark Side of the
Force (and how he becomes Darth Vader.)

Another rumored subject is the enslavement of the Wookies by the
Empire.

Chip Cataldo has said that his source tells him that the films will
"feature the Millennium Falcon, Wookies, IG-88, IG-72, IG-55, IG-30,
and IG-4 and The Mandalorian Shock Force of 100,000 soldiers." The
Mandalorian Troopers, apparently have the same armor as Boba Fett.


6. What are the titles of the new movies?

Answer (*): Again, no one knows for sure. There have been rumors
that the first film would be named "The Clone Wars" or "Enter the Dark
Lord". The third film has rumored to be called either "Fall of the
Republic" or "Battle for the Republic."

7. Who is in the new movies?

Answer (*): Once more, nothing has been announced. Lucas has stated on
numerous occasions that he will go with mostly un- or little-known
actors rather than big expensive stars. I think it's probably safe to
assume that Frank Oz will reprise his role as Yoda, and that James Earl
Jones would lend his voice to Darth Vader again. Other than that
nothing is known.


7a. I heard that Macauley Culkin would play Luke as a child, is that
true?

Answer (*): While again, nothing is known, this is highly (thankfully)
doubtful.


7b. I heard that Mark Hamill would play Anakin Skywalker, true?

Answer (*): Again, not confirmed, but doubtful. (He certainly doesn't
look right for the role.)


7c. I heard that Kenneth Branagh would be playing Obi-Wan Kenobi in the
new movies, is that true?

Answer: George Lucas _completely_ detonated this rumor, in his
interview with TV Guide, in October 1994. He said "Absolutely not.
I've never met him [Branagh] or talked to him. That's something the
London tabloids made up. I'm amazed at how the media comes up with
this kind of 'news item'"

This particular rumor seems to have originated in the British press in
early June 1994. It was picked up on, by industry trade paper Daily
Variety, in the June 28th, 1994 Michael Fleming "Dish" column. Under
the headline, "Branagh & 'Star Wars': a pint-size Guinness?" (You
count the number of puns yourself), Fleming says that "talk" in
Hollywood has said that Kenneth Branagh will play the young Obi-Wan
Kenobi in the new Star Wars films. However, it also goes on to say
that both George Lucas's press agent, and Kenneth Branagh's press agent
deny that any talk has transpired. Branagh's agent has later said that
Kenneth would be interested, but hasn't gotten any offers
(Entertainment Weekly, August 26th/September 2nd Fall Movie Preview.)


The Branagh rumor is in direct conflict with George Lucas's repeated
statements that he would hire a cast of little, or complete unknowns
for the new films. And while, Branagh is certainly not as well known
as say, Mel Gibson, he is hardly an obscure actor either. In addition,
Branagh has a wealth of projects already, that he is very interested in
pursuing. However, Branagh has certainly shown that he is willing to
do a "fun" project (i.e. Dead Again, or Frankenstein), and it would
take an actor of Branagh's caliber to match the Oscar-nominated
performance of Sir Alec Guinness in the role. In addition, Branagh has
just completed an adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, for
Lucas-pal, Francis Ford Copolla. (The script for Frankenstein, was
co-written by Frank Darabont, who co-wrote many of the Young Indy
scripts with George Lucas.)


8. Who is directing the new movies?

Answer: George Lucas seems to have completely changed his tune on
directing the new films. He has said that he is completely open to
directors, _including himself_. George Lucas has not directed a film
since the original Star Wars, but he has said that he may direct one or
two of the films. The only confirmed person that has actually been
approached is Rocketeer director Joe Johnston. He used to work at ILM
until about 1989. (He is listed in the Star Wars credits as Joseph
Johnston.) Joe Johnston's current project, The Pagemaster, is due for
release this Christmas. He is also scheduled to direct the
fantasy-adventure "Jumanji" with Robin Williams (and ILM effects) for
TriStar starting sometime in the next four months. A certain Video Game
Magazine seems to perpetuate the rumor that John Woo is going to direct
the films, but this seems ludicrous. (This same magazine also printed
a story saying that a new Star Wars movie would be out in the summer of
1994, so you can take their word at face value.) Steven Spielberg has
said, on record, that he feels that Star Wars is George's baby. (After
all, would Spielberg get Lucas to direct E.T. 2 ?)


9. What are the Clone Wars?

Answer (*): The Clone Wars seem to be a war between the Jedi and some
unknown enemy. Some people claim that this enemy is a huge contingent
of "Mandalorian Shock Troopers", who wear armor like Boba Fett. The
source of this rumor, however is unknown. The only sure thing is that
Obi-Wan Kenobi served under Bail Organa (Leia's adoptive father.)


10. I have a script called "Fall of the Republic", is that the new Star
Wars movie?

Answer: Quite simply, no. Lucasfilm dismisses this treatment by
"John Flynn" to be nothing more than fan-fiction.


11. Is John Williams going to do the music?

Answer: Doug Adams relates the following story:

"On July 31, 1994 I saw John Williams conduct at Ravinia, Il. It was
a concert of entirely his own music. Before the suite from Star Wars
he said the following :

'George Lucas is now threatening to make more Star Wars films so I guess
I'd better get ready.'"


11a. I heard that John Williams retired, is that true?

Answer: John Williams retired as the conductor of the Boston Pops
orchestra, a position he had held since 1980. He is still writing
film scores. (Jurassic Park and Schindler's List). One of the reasons
he said that he retired was so that he could write MORE film scores
than he had been able to do in the past (he averaged about two a year.)
He has, however remained as a "consultant" with the Boston Pops this
year, as they are trying to find a new conductor.


12. But, I heard John Williams is dead, is that true?

Answer: No. He is not dead. I saw him conduct the Los Angeles
Philharmonic on Saturday, February 19th 1994, and 1 BILLION people saw
him pick up his Oscar for Schindler's List.


12a.I heard that Alec Guinness is dead, is that true?

Answer: No, he's not dead. (In his own words "Oh, he's not dead. Not
yet.")


12b.I heard that Frank Oz is dead, is that true?

Answer: No. He is still very alive, and is in pre-production as the
director for the film "The Indian and the Cupboard" for longtime
Spielberg producers Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy. The Paramount
film is scheduled for release in 1995. The script has been written by
Melissa Mathison, her first script to go into production since E.T.
(Mathison is, incidentally, married to Harrison Ford.) He has also
recently signed a 2-year producing/directing deal with Disney.


12c. I heard that Peter Cushing is dead, is that true?

Answer: Unfortunately, this rumor is, in fact true, Peter Cushing died
in late August 1994.


13. Are there gonna be any Star Wars toys from the new films?

Answer: Yes. One of the sweetest deals in the Star Wars Universe for
Lucas is merchandising and licensing, so rest assured there will be
plenty of toys and collectibles from the new trilogy. According to
Chip Cataldo, Kenner, who is producing the new figures from the
original movies, may or may not make the toys through the new films.
In addition, there appears to have been some sort of Licensing summit
that took place at Skywalker Ranch in early November, where
merchandising ideas for the new films were discussed.


14. What is Luke and Leia's mother's name anyway?

Answer (*): We don't know. The pseudo-treatment Fall of the Republic
would have you believe that her name is "Lady Arcadia Skywalker".
Lucas, himself, referred to her only as "Mrs. Anakin Skywalker" in his
interview with Leonard Maltin, so perhaps it's either a secret, or he
hasn't thought of a name yet. Or else, it in some way may be crucial
to the plot that we don't know!


15. What about the trilogy after Return of the Jedi?

Answer: Conventional Wisdom tells us that these films will not be made
(if ever) for a long time. (My personal take on the VII-IX trilogy is
that Lucas will eventually do it, because of the way he was discussing
the nonology on Entertainment Tonight.)


16. Will the original Star Wars films be re-released?

Answer: Yes. The following is a press release, dated Monday, November
21st, 1994:

"Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox today announced
plans to distribute a Special Edition of the original "Star Wars"
motion picture for worldwide theatrical release in 1997, twenty years
after the film's first release in 1977. The Special Edition will
feature previously unreleased footage, new digital special effects, and
a digitally remastered soundtrack.
The recent breakthroughs in computer graphics developed by
Industrial Light & Magic will be used by George Lucas to create moving,
breathing creatures within the city of Mos Eisley outside the cantina
and in the Tatooine Dunes, as well as a host of new vehicles and
Droids.
George Lucas states, "The digital technology that ILM pioneered in
films like 'Jurassic Park' and 'Forrest Gump' allows me to revise a few
scenes which bring the movie closer to my original vision." The
technology will also allow Lucas to complete the scene in which Han
Solo confronts Jabba the Hutt, filmed in 1976 but not included in the
original film. The new work will add approximately four minutes to the
film.
"The original release of 'Star Wars' preceded the introduction
of our THX sound system in theaters," states Lucas. "I wanted everyone
to re-experience the film with the added benefits of today's motion
picture sound advances." Sound for the "Star Wars Special Edition"
will be remastered in one of the THX dubbing stages at Skywalker Sound
and will be released in the new digital formats now available in
theaters.
Peter Chernin, Chairman of Twentieth Century Fox, comments: "We
wanted to give the new generation of children - and their parents - the
chance to experience 'Star Wars' on the big screen. The 20th
anniversary year seemed the perfect time."
Tom Sherak, Senior Executive Vice President of Twentieth Century Fox
comments: "The 'Star Wars Special Edition' is a distribution and
marketing dream. Any time George Lucas, who in my mind is the number
one special effects 'genius' in the industry, has a chance to top his
work, I'm excited about Twentieth Century Fox being able to be part of
it."
Production of the Special Edition recently began at Industrial Light &
Magic and Skywalker Sound."

In May, Variety reported that Lucas was interested in having special
editions for each of the three of the original films. Plans call for
the three films to be re-released, at two month intervals, sometime in
1996 at specially selected theaters.


17. Will 20th Century Fox distribute the new films?

Answer: There now seem to be two prevailing theories on where the new
films will end up. The first is that they will in fact be distributed
by 20th Century Fox, and the other is that they will be distributed by
the new, as-yet-untitled, Steven Spielberg-Jeffrey Katzenberg-David
Geffen studio.

According to The Hollywood Reporter (11/22/94), "[s]ources say the
special edition represents the initial stages of what Fox hopes will be
continuing relationship with Lucas, who insiders say feels an
obligation to give the studio first dibs on the next "Star Wars"
projects."

However, Fox senior executive VP, Tom Sherak was quick to add,
"Whatever Mr. Lucas has planned for the next three (films) is his
decision. This has to do with an old alliance. What comes later comes
later. As for this project, this is a dream come true."

The Monday, October 31st 1994 Hollywood Reporter E-mail column says
that Lucas has been in discussions with the new
Spielberg-Katzenberg-Geffen studio as the possible distributor for the
new films. Lucasfilm and the new studio deny that any talks have taken
place.

The March 7th issue of Variety has said that all of the major studios
are lining up for the rights to release the new films. Fox no longer
has the right of first refusal on Star Wars sequels (they lost this,
when the Studio was sold to Rupert Murdoch in the mid-1980's).
According to Variety, Universal and Warner Bros. are looking like the
front runners for the new films. The Star Wars films will be
independently financed by Lucas himself, and distributed by the Studio.
The studio will be pay for the prints and advertising costs, and in
exchange get a small distribution fee. The lion share of the profits,
however, will got to Lucas. Lucas will meet with 20th Century Fox
soon, and Peter Chernin, 20th Century Fox studio chief, has said that
he would work very hard to "keep the crown jewel at the studio." (The
Hollywood Reporter, Dec. 1993)

Lucas distributing the films through the new
Spielberg-Katzenberg-Geffen studio makes perfect sense for several
reasons. The first is that the prevailing wisdom was Lucas was going
to distribute the films through Universal, because of his friendships
with people there. However, his relationships with Spielberg and
Katzenberg (who was at Paramount when Lucas made Raiders, and
collaborated with Lucas on several projects later at Disney) are
probably much stronger. Secondly, due to the nature of this new
studio, Lucas will probably be able to keep a large percentage of gross
profit points.


18. Was there a "Clone Wars" trailer before "The Paper"?

Answer: No, this was a rumor started by someone on Prodigy, in an
effort to drum up support for some video production of his. I saw The
Paper, and there was no such trailer. No one else that I know ever
saw this trailer. Besides, it would make absolutely no sense to have
a trailer for a film that will not be completed for at least two or
three years.


19. Have the Star Wars films begun production yet?

Answer: The answer to this question is a little more complex then one
might think. While neither principal photography, (i.e. shooting
scenes with real live main actors), nor special effects work has
commenced yet, according to an interview with Jim Morris, in the August
16th issue of the Hollywood Reporter, "...Morris is already gearing up
for production on Lucas' anticipated "Star Wars" prequels. 'We're
preparing for huge volume as well as new types of work. George will be
pushing the effects envelope on this...' What this means is that there
have probably been some test effects reels done.

Production on the Special Edition of Star Wars has already begun at
Industrial Light and Magic.


20. Who is writing the new Star Wars films?

Answer: George Lucas has said that he would be writing the new Star
Wars screenplays. However, he has not ruled out the possibility of a
co-writer (as the last two films of the original trilogy of Star Wars
films were co-written by Lucas and Lawrence Kasdan. The original Star
Wars screenplay had an uncredited polish by Gloria Katz and Willard
Huyuck.) In his 9/22 "Dish Column", Michael Fleming says: "Hollywood
sources say George Lucas wants [Frank] Darabont to write the
script for a new 'Star Wars' film which will be a prequel to the first
trilogy. A Lucas spokeswoman said Lucas intends to write the first
draft of the script himself, but that Darabont is a candidate to do
the next draft. If Lucas actually makes his long overdue return to
directing on the next 'Wars', it's unlikely Darabont will stand in
the way. Lucas won't finish the script until next spring at the
soonest." (Thanks to Cindy Yan)

This is not particularly surprising, since Lucas has a tendency to use
writers on multiple projects, and Darabont co-wrote many of The Young
Indiana Jones Chronicles with him. Darabont has also written the
screenplay for the upcoming "Frankenstein" film, produced by Lucas'
pal, Francis Ford Copolla, and directed by Kenneth Branagh. Darabont,
himself has made his directorial debut with the critically acclaimed
film "The Shawshank Redemption."

Darabont has also said that the two other scripters working on this
project are also Young Indy alums. If this is true, these are the
writers that worked on The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles: Carrie
Fisher, Jonathan Hales, Jonathan Hensleigh, Matthew Jacobs, Gavin
Scott, Julie Selbo and Rosemary Anne Sisson. (Special thanks to Albert
Murdiono for this list.) I doubt Carrie Fisher is one of the
screenwriters for the new films, however. Lawrence Kasdan, the
co-writer of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, has also
been rumored to be involved.

Please note that the Star Wars films are all based on original
screenplays, and are not adapted from pre-written books. The books you
see bearing the titles "Star Wars", "The Empire Strikes Back" and
"Return of the Jedi" are novels based on the screenplays, and not the
other way around.

21. What aspect ratio will the new films be shot in?

Answer: Almost without a doubt, the new films will be shot in 'Scope
(2.35:1) If not just for continuity's sake, then because Lucas is
clearly biased towards the wider frame. All of Lucas's movies (both
directed and produced by him) have been 2.35:1. with the exception of
Amblin's animated "The Land Before Time."

98. What other projects are Lucasfilm working on?

Answer: The first new Lucasfilm theatrical release in five and a half
years, "Radioland Murders" was released October 21st, 1994 by Universal
Pictures. The film, directed by Mel Smith, stars Mary Stuart
Masterson, David Benben, Stephen Toblowsky and Christopher Lloyd. The
film is based on an idea by George Lucas and Willard Huyuck and Gloria
Katz created over twenty years ago during the production of "American
Graffiti." In some ways, Radioland is a test-run for the new Star Wars
films, since it is the first time that the new digital effects that
Lucasfilm created for the Emmy Award winning TV-show "The Young Indiana
Jones Chronicles" are being used in a feature film. These processes
are crucial, according to Lucas, to make the new Star Wars films
financially feasible. In addition to "Radioland Murders", Lucasfilm is
also in preproduction on a film called "Red Tails", to be directed by
Thomas Carter. The film, not currently set up at any studio, is about
the first all black air squadron in World War II. Lucasfilm also has a
fourth Indiana Jones production waiting in the wings.

Lucas is also at work at four Young Indy TV-movies, and according to
his TV-guide interview, about to write another script.


99. I know this isn't Star Wars, but I heard that there will be a new
Indiana Jones movie, is that true?

Answer: Yes, according to Lucasfilm, this project is "definitely
happening" and will start production within "six to eight months."However, Steven Spielberg has recently said that he was going to take a
year off from directing to spend with his family. Harrison Ford has
already committed to his next film, a remake of the Humphery
Bogart/Audrey Hepburn classic "Sabrina." This Paramount film goes into
production later this year, for a 1995 release. The remake has been
written by Barbara Benedek. (Benedek, incidentally is ESB, ROTJ and
Raiders scripter Lawrence Kasdan's ex-wife.) Therefore, the new film
will be out in May 1996 (Wednesday, May 22nd, 1996, to be exact), at
the earliest. Variety (August 21, 1994) has said that, if all goes to
plan, Indy IV should roll sometime next summer. According to the
Sunday, February 20th Los Angeles Times, production on the film,
directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Harrison Ford, will take
place next year. The film is being written by "The Fugitive" scribe
Jeb Stuart. No details on plot, title, or cast other than Ford are
known. However, Denholm Elliot, who played Marcus Brody in the first
and third Indiana Jones films tragically passed away last year.

While the film's plotline, itself, is a closely guarded secret at this
point, the following is known. There will be no "comic-value" Nazis in
the film and it will take place, according to Harrison Ford, in a time
closer to the present than the first three.

As for Sean Connery's participation, Lucas says "It depends on the
story. If the father role is needed, we'd have him back."

In addition, an Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland is currently under
construction. Called "Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden
Eye", this attraction will be on the cutting edge of ride technology.
Guests will board a jeep/simulator and travel along one of three
possible adventures. The Temple is scheduled to open in Spring 1995.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dan
(writing projects and current releases)