Star Wars Episode VII cast announced

British actors including Attack the Block's John Boyega, Daisy Ridley of Channel 4's Youngers, Lord of the Rings' Andy Serkis and Domhnall Gleeson, last seen in Richard Curtis romcom About Time, will join veteran Max von Sydow, Girls' Adam Driver and Inside Llewyn Davis lead Oscar Isaac, alongside returning stars Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film.

Following today's full cast read-through, director JJ Abrams said "We are so excited to finally share the cast of Star Wars: Episode VII. 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. We start shooting in a couple of weeks, and everyone is doing their best to make the fans proud."

While this evening's announcement throws plenty of familiar – and less familiar – names into the mix, who's playing who is still being kept closely under wraps, and we still don't have confirmation on today's reports that Ford will return in a "gigantic role". (Maybe we'll have to wait for "Star Wars Day", aka May the Fourth, for news on that?)

As previously revealed, the Episode VII screenplay has been written by Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan, with John Williams returning to the franchise as composer. The new instalment begins shooting at Pinewood Studios next month and will open in cinemas worldwide on 18 December 2015.

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