When you watch Lucasfilm edicts over a period of years, a structure emerges: bad news is almost invariably drowned out by thrilling brand-new items, which is something the makers of Star Wars always have up their sleeves.

In 2013, the company was particularly proud of this one: They had to announce that the first Force Awakens screenwriter, Michael Arndt, had left the movie; unsaid would be that George Lucas’ original dialogue perception had pretty much gone with him. So Lucasfilm waited weeks, and wove it into an announcement that echoed like a Death Star explosion: J.J. Abrams and Empire Strike Back legend Lawrence Kasdan would write it instead. Arndt had done “a terrific job bringing us to this point, ” Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said. Read more …

More about Star Wars, David Benioff, Dan Weiss, Kathleen Kennedy, and Entertainment

Read more: mashable.com