‘Star Wars: Episode 7′ to Begin Shooting On Tatooine in Six Weeks?
It's been almost a year and a half since 'Star Wars: Episode 7' was announced and over fifteen months since J.J. Abrams became the film's director, but with a December 18, 2015 release date, the film has to begin production shortly if they hope to come out next year. The latest word is the film will commence principle photography in Morocco on May 14.
This news comes from Devin Faraci at Badass Digest, and (though unconfirmed) that would suggest that part of the movie takes place on Tatooine, or at least a desert planet. Morocco would be a new location for the franchise as Tunisia played the part of Luke Skywalker's homeworld in the first 'Star Wars' and in the prequels (geek note: the Yuma desert and Death Valley were used in 'Return of the Jedi), but Morocco may be more filmmaker friendly as it's been a popular location for filmmaker Ridley Scott over the last couple of years.
What that also means is that the we should find out who's actually staring in the film pretty quickly. Abrams is known for his "mystery box" approach, and if they do start next month it's impressive that he's kept most of the casting under wraps. Those who've been heavily rumored to play new Jedis and Siths include Benedict Cumberbatch, Gary Oldman, recent Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o, Jack Reynor ('Transformers 4'), Jesse Plemons ('Breaking Bad'), Ed Speleers (‘Downton Abbey‘), John Boyega (‘Attack the Block’), Matthew James Thomas and Ray Fisher, though it seems the only name close to being locked down is 'Girls' star Adam Driver. We wouldn't be surprised if Disney and Abrams have an elaborate "here's your cast"-style unveiling shortly, and going by the latest speculation, it would make sense if the cast is revealed on May 4, which has become known as 'Star Wars' day.