Huge news from Disney, which is under the relatively new steerage of Alan Horn. CNBC was first to report via twitter that Disney has purchased Lucasfilm, paying the same amount for the company that it did for Marvel a few years ago: $4b in cash and stock. THR quickly confirmed the report, saying that current LucasFilm co-chair Kathleen Kennedy will become president of LucasFilm, as we’ve more or less known would happen. The bigger news is that THR mentions that a new Star Wars film is planned for 2015. Kennedy will be the exec producer of Star Wars: Episode VII and future Star Wars feature films, with George Lucas acting as “creative consultant.” Read a statement from Lucas after the break. Here’s what Star Wars and LucasFilm creator George Lucas had to say: For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next. It’s now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers. I’ve always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime. I’m confident that with Lucasfilm under the leadership of Kathleen Kennedy, and having a new home within the Disney organization, Star Wars will certainly live on and flourish for many generations to come. Disney’s reach and experience give Lucasfilm the opportunity to blaze new trails in film, television, interactive media, theme parks, live entertainment, and consumer products. In a conference call, Disney execs discussed the previous success that Disney and LucasFilm have had together, and the idea of bringing together the companies, their stable(s) of characters, and approach to creative content, based in part on the early experience of featuring Star Wars content in Disney theme parks. Star Wars Episode VII will be released in 2015, and followed by Episodes VIII and IX, with long-term plans including a “new Star Wars film every two to three years.” Those will be part of Disney’s overal eight to ten film per year plan. The Indiana Jones franchise is mentioned in the call, but one “encumbrance” of Indy is the fact that Paramount has released those films, so Disney can’t quickly begin making new films in that franchise. Star Wars is clearly the focus of Disney’s interest. Use of Star Wars in games, parks, and television mentioned as well, with no specifics. The deal specifically brings the already in-development Episode VII to Disney; which is to say, there’s a good amount of work done on that film already, with plans in place for the next two episodes as well.

Joss Whedon has added another star to the cast ensemble of "S.H.I.E.L.D.". The filmmaker, who is on board to write and direct the live-action TV project, confirms that former "ER" actress Ming-Na has been tapped to take a lead role in the pilot. The Dr. Jing-Mei "Deb" Chen of the NBC medical drama series will portray Agent Melinda May, an ace pilot, a weapons expert and a soldier who is described as being soulful but damaged by her time spent in combat. She'll join Clark Gregg who has been earlier slated to reprise his role as Agent Phil Coulson though the character died in "The Avengers" movie. "S.H.I.E.L.D." centers on the secret military law-enforcement agency headed by Nick Fury in the Marvel Universe. Despite the connectionbetween the upcoming show and the superhero-ensemble feature film, it's believed the TV adaptation will not include the same characters. Whedon teams up with his brother Jed and Maurissa Tancharoen to work on the script. Production on the live-action show, which is made under the "Avengers" helmer's exclusive three-year film and TV deal with Marvel Studios, is expected to start soon. In addition to her "ER" role, Ming-Na is known for portraying Chun-Li Zang in "Street Fighter" movie and voicing Fa Mulan in "Mulan" films and "Kingdom Hearts" video game series. She also had regular roles on other TV shows namely "As the World Turns", "Vanished" and "The Batman". Her latest regular role was as Camile Wray on "Stargate Universe".

Will "The Wolverine" have a cameo from an "X-Men" member? According to latest report from We Got This Covered, the upcoming Hugh Jackman-starring Marvel film will feature an appearance from none other than Jean Grey a.k.a Phoenix, who was portrayed by Famke Janssen in the previous "X-Men" movies. A source close to the production of "Wolverine" revealed to the sitethat Janssen jetted off to Sidney last week to film a cameo for the upcoming flick. The report came shortly after Janssen hinted at the possibility to reprise the role of Jean Grey in an "X-Men"-related film during the press tour of "Taken 2". It is still unclear how Janssen's character will fit into the "Wolverine" plot as there is still no official word to clarify the rumor. The 47-year-old actress herself had previously played the love interest of Logan in 2000's "X-Men", 2003's "X2" and 2006's "X-Men: The Last Stand". "Wolverine" has been filming in both Australia and Japan since July. The upcoming film will find Logan, the eternal warrior and outsider, in Japan. There, samurai steel will clash with adamantium claw as the mutant hero confronts a mysterious figure from his past in an epic battle that will leave him forever changed. Bringing back Jackman as Logan/Wolverine, the film is directed by James Mangold with Mark Bomback and Christopher McQuarrie penning the script. It will hit the U.S. cinemas on July 26, 2013. Jackman previously stated that the movie will be a standalone one without anything related to 2009's "X-Men Origins: Wolverine". He claimed, "We've deliberately not called it Wolverine 2 because we want it to be placed and feel like a standalone picture. With an all-new cast and setting in Japan, it's going to give us a whole new visual aesthetic."