Production began earlier this month, ahead of the film's December 2019 release.

While Force Awakens was called out for its intentional parallels to A New Hope, most are in agreement that it was a rousing return to form for the series, with Abrams delivering an entertaining and emotional adventure in the galaxy far, far away. His filmmaking style seems to be the perfect fit for Star Wars, which is why Gleeson is excited to see what Abrams can do.

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Speaking with Variety's The Little Stranger, Gleeson said Abrams coming back is "epic."

Abrams has demonstrated several times in his career he has what it takes to craft a crowd-pleasing blockbuster, and The Force Awakens was no exception. At the time of its release, it was the best-received Star Wars film since The Empire Strikes Back, even being named as one of the 10 best movies of the year by the American Film Institute. It stands reason to believe Abrams put a lot of thought and care into Episode IX and will do everything he can to ensure it's a worthwhile finale. As a lifelong Star Wars fan himself, Abrams wants to honor the rich legacy of the films and give the story a proper sendoff. With all the film has on its plate, there's a chance Star Wars 9 ends up being Abrams' most epic film in of scale and scope.

Unfortunately for fans, it's going to be some time before they get an opportunity to see something beyond vague quotes like this. Though Abrams was transparent about some key story elements (the plan for Leia), he's still the master of the mystery box and will keep plot details under wraps until Lucasfilm is ready to rev up the marketing machine. In all likelihood, Episode IX will follow a similar advertising pattern to its direct predecessors, meaning a teaser trailer won't hit until spring 2019 at next year's Celebration. Hopefully, the first footage delivers on the promise of an epic ride.

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Source: Brent Lang