Previous comments on how James Mangold’s Star Wars movie happened have painted a picture of mutual excitement between the co-writer/director and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. So hearing that Dawn of the Jedi is not only still cooking, but it’s being given the time to do so, is exciting.

James Mangold, who just picked up a Directors Guild of America nomination for “A Complete Unknown,” recently told MovieWeb that his upcoming “Star Wars” movie is deliberately set thousands of years before any other movie in the long-running franchise so that he doesn’t have to deal with the canon and can thus avoid angering fans.

Rise of the Jedi', director James Mangold explained that his prequel will deviate from the nearly 50-year old franchise.

"The Star Wars movie would be taking place 25,000 years before any known Star Wars movies takes place," he told MovieWeb. "It's an area and a playground that I've always [wanted t

The thing James Mangold finds most appealing about his Dawn of the Jedi movie may also allow the film to chart a bold new future for Star Wars.