Star Wars is back with its ninth film, The Rise of Skywalker, which is due to hit cinemas on December 20. Before the Star Wars Celebration panel that took place on Friday, details of Episode IX had been scant. The new film was originally slated for release on May 24, but this was delayed until December due to a change in director. One of the most anticipated films of the year, Episode IX, will be directed by JJ Abrams, who was behind the 2015 film The Force Awakens. Initially, Lucasfilm tapped Jurassic World’s Colin Trevorrow, but the writer left the project last year leading Abrams to step in and the film’s release date be pushed back a few months. “With The Force Awakens, JJ delivered everything we could have possibly hoped for, and I am so excited that he is coming back to close out this trilogy,” said Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy in a statement. The news of the titled was live streamed across the world from an event taking place in Chicago. The lucky few fans attending the Star Wars panel in the US tweeted their excitement as the first concept images and stills were released. Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac and Adam Driver, the stars of the film’s prequels The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, are set to feature in the film that will wrap up the stories of the new characters. The entire Skywalker family saga, which spanned the three Star Wars Trilogies, is also set to conclude in the film. Princess Leia, played by the Carrie Fisher, who died in 2016, lives on in the last shot of the film. The sequel to the Last Jedi's <a href="https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2143282/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_t1">cast list</a> indicates that Keri Russell, Lupita Nyong'o and Mark Hamill will play roles in the movie. Although not much has been hinted about the plot for the film so far, Boyega told <em>Empire Magazine</em> that it would involve a time jump of a year following the events of The Last Jedi. It also has been reported that Finn, Boyega’s character, will have longer hair in the new film, adding to the speculation that there is a time jump. Speaking at the film's name release event in Chicago, Boyega said Finn has "some form of closure" in the next film on "who he identifies with".