6. The Success Of The Force Awakens Led To An Episode VIII Rewrite
Star Wars: The Force Awakens has been such a huge hit that it's forced Avatar out of its loose December 2017 release slot, but the downside to that is of course the fact that it will no longer be released next May. While Disney clearly realises that a Star Wars movie every Christmas is a smart business decision for them, The Hollywood Reporter recently revealed another far more interesting explanation for the delay. Writer and director Rian Johnson is now taking another crack at the script, and while such changes so late in the day would normally be cause for concern, it sounds as if these are being done for all the right reasons. The alternations stem from the reaction from fans and moviegoers to the newly introduced characters, and it seems as if their roles are being significantly bulked up in order to address the demand for them. While that may mean the odd extra few scenes for the likes of Rey and Finn and perhaps less of a focus on Original Trilogy characters like Luke and Leia, chances are that it's supporting players like Captain Phasma and Poe Dameron who have ended up benefiting most in terms of Episode VIII screentime thank to vocal fans desperate to see more of them. As a result, it might just be worth waiting those extra seven months.