8. Alfonso Cuarón
Alfonso Cuarón has blown us away twice with back-to-back masterpiece sci-fi flicks in Children of Men and last year's Best Picture-nominated Gravity, which must surely make him an automatic entry on Disney's shortlist for Episode IX directors. What distinguishes Cuarón from a lot of other sci-fi directors is that he's also proven himself capable in a multitude of other genres, be it dramas (Y Tu Mama Tambien) and also family-friendly blockbuster fare, as he delivered one of the best early Harry Potter films in The Prisoner of Azkaban. He's one of the directors on this list best-equipped to handle huge budgets and deal with immense pressure, though the main question will be whether the director will want to return to more homogenised studio pictures after having been given such creative and artistic freedom on the set of Gravity. Still, his slate is looking pretty clear for the time being, so if Lucas and co. want him, they should field an offer out while the window is wide open...
How Likely Is It? 5/10