Star Wars Star Wars Star Wars is an American epic space opera franchise, created by George Lucas and centered around a film series that began with the eponymous 1977 movie. The saga quickly became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. The first film was followed by two successful sequels, "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980) and "Return of the Jedi" (1983); these three films constitute the original "Star Wars" trilogy. A prequel trilogy was released between 1999 and 2005, albeit to mixed reactions from critics and fans. Finally, a sequel trilogy to conclude the nine-episode saga began in 2015 with "". The first eight
Star Wars sequel trilogy plans to produce the sequel films. The first installment, "", was released in December 2015 in the U.S. It is directed by J. J. Abrams who co-wrote the screenplay with Lawrence Kasdan and Michael Arndt. Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and other cast members from the original trilogy returned to reprise their roles and co-star alongside Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, and Oscar Isaac. Unlike the previous two trilogies, whose films were released approximately three years apart and released on Memorial Day weekend, the sequel films are planned to be released two years apart in December. "" was