Stars Wars standalone film titled ‘Rogue One’; Felicity Jones officially cast

Warning: potential spoilers follow.

Big Star Wars news: the top-secret standalone movie, due for release in Winter 2016, directed by Gareth Edwards, is to be called Rogue One – but that’s just one piece of news. Here’s the list:

• Due out on December 16, 2016, the first Star Wars standalone movie is to be titled Rogue One, set to [POTENTIAL SPOILERS BEGIN] follow the exploits of a group of bounty hunters who are entangled with the fate of the Death Star. Could ‘Rogue One‘ be the team’s name? [SPOILERS END]
• Long-rumoured to be appearing in the new film, Felicity Jones has been officially confirmed to join the cast. As the first announced cast member, does this mean she’ll be playing the lead (whatever character that may be)?
• Non-standlone news: Rian Johnson has been confirmed to helm Star Wars: Episode VIII, due May 26, 2017. This isn’t a surprise, as it has been all but confirmed for a few months now. Nonetheless, the thought of the director of Looper doing a Star Wars movie is a thrilling one.

So let’s take a look at the shiny new title: the ‘Rogue’ part most likely has something to do with Rogue Squadron, the heroic group of Rebellion soldiers who fight against the Empire – so expect lots of X-Wing action. Hopefully, more will be revealed when Star Wars: The Force Awakens rolls around on December 18 this year.