Disney has now confirmed that the next film in the Star Wars saga, Episode VII, will hit cinemas on 18 December 2015.

“We’re very excited to share the official 2015 release date for Star Wars: Episode VII, where it will not only anchor the popular holiday filmgoing season but also ensure our extraordinary filmmaking team has the time needed to deliver a sensational picture,” Disney Studios chair Alan Horn explained.

The script was originally going to be written by Michael Arndt but will now be penned by Lawrence Kasdan and director J.J. Abrams. “It became clear that given the time frame and given the process and the way the thing was going that working with Larry in this way was going to get us where we need to be and when we needed to be,” Abrams noted. Arndt’s name is not mentioned in the official announcement on starwars.com.