7. James Gunn
We now come to probably the biggest wild card in our pack, as up-and-comer James Gunn's reputation with fanboys will depend almost entirely on how well his soon-to-be-released sci-fi Guardians of the Galaxy is received. Expectations are undeniably high, and given the tonal and stylistic similarity the movie is likely to bear to the new Star Wars series, if Gunn nails it, he should certainly land on producer Kathleen Kennedy's shortlist for Episode IX. From what we've seen so far, it appears that Gunn has imbued the movie with a distinctive visual style and sharp sense of humour, and though the jury remains out on the script and performances, if given the right script, Gunn would probably be a solid choice for the final Star Wars, even if people might have their fair reservations. It's also important to consider that if Guardians does well, Marvel may offer him other in-house directing work, and he may not even be available to film Episode IX.
How Likely Is It? 4/10