Names and faces
It’s official — Star Wars: Episode VII has a release date: J.J. Abrams’ new film will open Dec. 18, 2015. The news appeared in an announcement Thursday on StarWars.com. “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,” said Alan Horn, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios, in the announcement. Late last month, word came that director Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan were taking over screenwriting duties on the newest Star Wars film from Oscar winner Michael Arndt. Arndt ( Little Miss Sunshine, Toy Story 3) had been announced last November as the original screenwriter for Episode VII shortly after word surfaced that he had written a lengthy treatment for a trilogy of new Star Wars films. Abrams was tapped to direct Star Wars: Episode VII back in January; Kasdan has a long history with Lucasfilm, as a screenwriter on Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars: Episode VI — Return of the Jedi. Shooting on Episode VII is to begin in the spring at Pinewood Studios in Britain. Abrams and Bryan Burk are producing, with Tommy Harper and Jason McGatlin serving as executive producers. John Williams is returning to the Star Wars universe to write the score.
A fire has burned the childhood home of rapper Eminem in Detroit. The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press reported crews responded Thursday evening to the boarded-up bungalow, which is pictured on the cover of Eminem’s just-released The Marshall Mathers LP 2. It also was on the musician’s 2000 album The Marshall Mathers LP. The blaze damaged parts of the small home’s top floor. The cause of the fire wasn’t immediately known. Public records show the home was listed as the address of Eminem’s mother, Deborah Mathers, starting in the 1980s. It later changed hands. The home was listed earlier this year for online auction by the state. A past owner tried to sell it on eBay for $500,000 but received no bids.