Disney issues open casting call for what could be Star Wars VII

The post, spotted by UKopencall on Twitter, indicates Disney is looking for a young man and a young woman to fill a couple roles in an unnamed film.

According to the profiles, “Rachel” was forced to fend for herself in a dangerous town after she lost her parents. “Thomas” is a smart, capable, sometimes courageous boy who grew up without his father.

OK, you can't get much less "Star Wars"-y than Rachel and Thomas. But industry watchers think this is the real deal.

The BBC reports the descriptions of these characters match those that leaked online earlier this year, and suggests the names have been changed to keep from publicizing a casting call for Star Wars.

And the technique worked for Lucas' film long, long ago: remember this guy? Mark Hamill got the part of Luke Skywalker thanks to an open casting call.

The news comes shortly after a slight shakeup on the production side of things: Director J.J. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan of Empire Strikes Back fame are now co-writing Star Wars VII.

But a writer for Bleeding Cool says the duo hasn't changed as much of the script as earlier reports indicated.

“In cross-checking this casting call with my sources, I’ve confirmed that, actually, the same story will still be in play; the same characters are being sought as several months ago.”

So, assuming this call actually is for "Star Wars," what’s in store for “Rachel” and “Thomas?” It’s difficult to say.

While Episode VII will naturally be a continuation of the Star Wars epic, casting lead characters without parents rules out direct inheritance of Force sensitivity from known Jedi.

Put another, less geeky way — Lawrence Kasdan has said Episode VII won't directly follow any of the stories from the books and novels of the Expanded Universe. Like frustrated Stormtroopers, we have yet to find the elusive plot points we're looking for.

Disney will hold its casting meetings throughout November in Bristol, Manchester, Glasgow, Dublin and London. Principal photography on "Star Wars VII" is expected to begin next year.

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