J.J. Abrams says The Force Awakens has not been Disney-fied

The wait is almost over, as J.J. Abrams confirms he has a final cut of Star Wars: The Force Awakens in the can. The director announced the film was complete during a talk hosted by Vanity Fair, and also moved to reassure fans that Disney has not interfered with his vision for the franchise.

"When you do a Disney project, there’s a clause in there that you kind of go, 'Well, if I were a lawyer I could probably drive a truck through it'," said Abrams in reference to the studio’s ability to take a project out of a director’s hands should it wish. However, in the case of Star Wars, the studio has apparently remained respectfully hands-off.

"I cannot say enough about how Bob Iger and Alan Horn have understood this thing that is now part of the Disney company," continues Abrams. "And they’re not trying to Disney-fy it, they’re not doing anything other than, I think, an incredibly smart thing, which is letting Kathleen Kennedy — who is a remarkable person and producer — run and lead Lucasfilm to a place where I think it wants to go."

Reassuring stuff, then. With December fast approaching, anticipation is expected to build even more over the coming weeks, with a final trailer set to arrive in due course. Starring Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, John Boyega, Daisy Ridley and Oscar Isaac, Star Wars: The Force Awakens will open in the UK on December 17 2015 and the US the following day.

George Wales

George was once GamesRadar's resident movie news person, based out of London. He understands that all men must die, but he'd rather not think about it. But now he's working at Stylist Magazine.