Star Wars Rogue One Reshoots to Be Assisted by Bourne Writer/Director - Report

Last week it was revealed that Rogue One, the upcoming Star Was spinoff, would be undergoing several weeks of reshoots this summer. It has now been reported that director Gareth Edwards will be assisted by fellow filmmaker Tony Gilroy.

According to EW, Gilroy will work as both a writer and second-unit director on the movie. This will be Gilroy's second collaboration with Edwards, following additional script work he did on the 2014 blockbuster Godzilla. Gilroy is best known for directing The Bourne Legacy and the George Clooney thriller Michael Clayton, as well as writing the first three Bourne movies.

Despite initial rumours that the Rogue One reshoots will be extensive and intended to lighten the tone of the movie, EW's sources as Lucasfilm have stated that they have been planned for a long time, but were moved back from the spring to allow the filmmakers extra time to decide what new material was needed.

"The changes have everything to do with clarity and character development and all take place [as inserts] within scenes we've already shot," the source explained. "It's a lot of talking in cockpits."

EW reports that the length of the reshoots--around five weeks--is in fact down to the complexity of working with a high-profile ensemble cast, many of whom are now working on other projects. "It is a complicated schedule trying to pull people in around other things they're doing," the source said. "And this cast is spread out all over the world."

For nearly a year, both the filmmakers and cast have been promising that Rogue One will much more of "war movie" than previous films in the long-running franchise. The Lucasfilm source states that this is still the case, and the reshoots are not designed to lighten the tone. "The movie is very different than [The Force Awakens], and that's intentional," the source says. "It's a war film."

Rogue One is set before the original Star Wars, and focuses upon a group of mercenaries who are hired to capture the plans to the Death Star. It hits cinemas on December 16, and stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen, Riz Ahmed, Forest Whitaker, and Mads Mikkelsen.