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"After months of silence, Lucasfilm finally announced the main cast of the forthcoming Star Wars revival, Episode VII, in one explosive sentence Tuesday.\n\"Actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join the original stars of the saga, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film,\" read the press release on Starwars.com.\nSee also: 'Girls' + 'Star Wars' = Hipsters Far, Far Away\nYou'll recognize the names of the actors playing Han Solo, Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, C-3PO, Chewbacca and R2-D2 (who was, up until now, the only character officially known to be returning to the franchise). Ford, Fisher and Hamill's participation has been something of an open secret for the last year and a half, ever since George Lucas accidentally mentioned to Bloomberg Businessweek they'd be returning; photos of the trio in London in recent days made the fact even more abundantly clear.\nIf you're unfamiliar with the other names, you might remember Boyega from 24: Live Another Day, Driver from Girls, Isaac from Inside Llewelyn Davis, Gleeson from About Time and various Harry Potters. Serkis, of course, played the CGI Gollum in Lord of the Rings.\nBritish newcomer Daisy Ridley is the least well known of the new team. You'll know her if you happened to watch the eighth episode of the second season of the PBS show Mr. Selfridge, where she plays a character called Roxy.\nAnd then there's 85-year old Max Von Sydow, the legendary Swedish actor renowned for playing villains such as Emperor Ming the Merciless in Flash Gordon \u2014 coincidentally enough, the franchise that inspired Lucas to write Star Wars in the first place.\nSee also: Nobody Puts R2 in the Corner: 13 Hilarious Reactions to the 'Star Wars' Cast Picture\n\"It is both thrilling and surreal to watch the beloved original cast and these brilliant new performers come together to bring this world to life once again,\" said Abrams. \"We start shooting in a couple of weeks, and everyone is doing their best to make the fans proud.\"\n\nThe Star Wars Episode VII team assembles with director J.J. Abrams.Image:  LucasfilmThe announcement comes just days after Lucasfilm announced that Episode VII would pay no heed to the continuity established in hundreds of novels and comics \u2014 effectively wiping the canon clean of everything but the six movies and the Clone Wars TV show.\nChris Taylor is the author of How Star Wars Conquered the Universe, the first complete history of the Star Wars franchise and its fandom. The book releases September 30 and is available for pre-order here.\n\n\nNew Star Wars VII Cast\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMax Von Sydow\nSwedish actor Max Von Sydow is best known for his roles in Minority Report, Shutter Island and The Exorcist. \n\nImage: Matt Sayles/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nDomhnall Gleeson\nIrish actor Domhnall Gleeson is best known for playing Bill Weasley in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. He also starred in About Time in 2013. \n\nImage: Jon Furniss/Invision/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAndy Serkis\nAndy Serkis is best known for playing Gollum in the Lord of the Rings series. He also portrayed Ceasar in the Planet of the Apes reboot. \n\nImage: Evan Agostini/Invision/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nOscar Isaac\nActor Oscar Isaac has starred in films from Sucker Punch to 2013's Inside Llewyn Davis. \n\nImage: Greg Allen/Invision/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAdam Driver\nAdam Driver is best known for playing Adam in HBO's hit show Girls. He's also had parts in Lincoln and Inside Llewyn Davis. \n\nImage: Evan Agostini/Invision/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJohn Boyega\nJohn Boyega is relatively new to the scene. His first large role will be in the upcoming 24 reboot, Live Another Day. \n\nImage: Joel Ryan/Invision/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nDaisy Ridley\nStar Wars will be actress Daisy Ridley's first major role. \n\nImage: IMDB Daisy Ridley\n\n\n\n\n\n\nBONUS: 30 Star Wars Facts You Didn't Know\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2014/04/29/star-wars-episode-vii-cast-announced/>