Chewbacca's Chew-back-a!

While we still don't know who the leads are in the newest Star Wars film, the old favorites keep on rolling in. First, Luke, Leia, and Han Solo were said to be making their return to franchise and now it's being reported that Chewbacca will appear in Star Wars: Episode VII . According to a source who spoke with The Hollywood Reporter, Peter Mayhew, who played Chewbacca in the original trilogy, will reprise his role for the new film. Mayhew will join Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford, who are all reportedly returning for Episode VII.

Chewbacca being in Episode VII means that the new movie will likely not be following the tie-in books, but sticking to the events of the previous movies. In one of the books, Chewbacca dies in an attempt to save Han Solo's son, so unless this event is going to unfold in one of the upcoming films, it might be safest to base your predictions on just the films themselves.

News that Mayhew is returning to the franchise comes soon after it was reported that Star Wars started filming. On April 2 Disney chairman Alan Horn revealed that filming had started, but that casting wouldn't be complete until the screenplay was finalized. "We have a lot of them [in place]. We’re just not completely done yet... It's all about the screenplay. It has to be screenplay, screenplay, screenplay," Horn said.

Until the more information is released, any hardcore fans out there can start calculating whether the film being set 30 years after the Return of the Jedi means that Chewbacca's death might still be in the movie. Those of us who aren't so intense can start wondering whether Wookiee fur grays with age.

Image: Lucasfilm Ltd.