As production continues on ‘Star Wars: Episode VII,’ ‘Deadline Hollywood’ broke a story today that claims Rian Johnson is in talks to both write and direct ‘Episode VII’ and Episode IX.’ Rian Johnson, best known for his work on ‘Looper,’ is one of many recent directors announced to be involved in the sci-fi franchise. Johnson will be taking over the core film franchise, a surprise for many fans who were led to believe current ‘Episode VII’ director, J.J. Abrams. While he will be tasked with writing the story treatment for the next installation of ‘Star Wars,’ his main role will be directing the rest of the Sequel Trilogy after Abrams steps aside. It should be noted that ‘Bad Robot’ (Abram’s production company) is still slated to be producing the Sequel Trilogy, which raises many questions as to who will assume what responsibilities. It is clear by this announcement and the recent news of Gareth Edwards and Josh Trank directing ‘Star Wars’ spinoff films, that Lucasfilm and Disney are committed to providing the franchise with diverse talent.

Check out the full story from ‘Deadline Hollywood’

Update: According to  hollywoodreporter.com  Johnson will direct only Episode VIII, but he is writing a treatment for Episode IX.