Theater Thrills to Come!

The Goonies back in the day and today (Funny Junk)

Few things are better to a cinephile like me than to wake up Monday morning and learn that two of your favorite films—or film franchises—will be returning to theaters in the near future.

The first will be a sequel to the awesome 1985 adventure film The Goonies, which easily ranks as one of my favorite childhood movies. Rumors about a sequel have been floating around Hollywood for years—some involving a possible Broadway musical based on the film (which thankfully have stopped)—but no one has been able to get this thing done yet. Of course, it now looks as if this could change thanks in large part to director Richard Donner, who spoiled the surprise in a recent interview with TMZ.

“We’re doing a sequel,” Donner said as he signed autographs for his fans. This actually confirms what Goonies actor Sean Astin said when asked about a possible sequel in 2012: “It will happen. I’m 1000 percent certain there will be a sequel. I will bet my children on it.”

That’s good enough for me. And I can’t wait until Goonies 2 hits the Big Screen!

Of course, my excitement for the next film knows no bounds since I have been a science fiction geek for most of my life. And no science fiction franchise fuels my excitement more than… you guessed it… Star Wars!

Coming soon to a galaxy near you! (Disney/Sensible Reason)

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter on April 2, Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn indicated that shooting on Star Wars: Episode VII had begun in earnest and should be ready for release in December 2015. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t reveal much else—especially about casting, which Horn claimed was nearly complete—but he did mention a few tidbits worth recounting here.

The first is that the screenplay was co-written by two very talented Star Wars fans—Lawrence Kasdan (who penned The Empire Strikes Back) and J.J. Abrams—following an early draft by Michael Arndt. And if you ask me, only die-hard fans can produce a film worthy of carrying the Star Wars moniker.

The second tidbit likely isn’t new information, but Horn also mentioned that the new story would pick up “where 6 left off—and where 6 left off is 35 years ago by the time this is released.”

In other words, it won’t be easy to “connect the dots” between 1983’s Return of the Jedi and this new chapter—or the new trilogy, for that matter. I’m sure George Lucas is still receiving hate mail for his prequel films, which some fans feel should be viewed separately from the original trilogy. Granted, I feel he did the best he could to “set the stage” for the middle three episodes—aside from including Jar Jar Binks and casting that annoying, talentless kid as young Anakin—but this new trilogy should have much less work to do in this respect. After all, it won’t be limited by its connection to the Star Wars canon, or forced to tie up any loose ends, and can instead focus on new characters, new worlds and—most importantly—new ideas.

And this, dear readers, has me more excited about going to the theater than I have likely ever been. Now all we have to do is wait!