Lupita Nyong'o and Gwendoline Christie joining the Star Wars Team

Filming is underway on Episode VII right now in Abu Dhabi (check out the set photos), where cast members John Boyega (Attack the Block) and Daisy Ridley (Silent Witness) are reported to be shooting scenes that are set on the famous desert planet of the Star Wars universe, Tatooine. Early signs point to Boyega and Ridley playing the film’s young leads, though it’s also been reported that the revised screenplay written by Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan (The Empire Strikes Back) – based on the earlier draft from Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3) – features thereturning trio of Luke, Leia, and Han in prominent roles.

As such, it’s not clear how much screen time in Episode VII will be devoted to the characters being portrayed by Nyong’o and Christie. Both are well-respected acting talents, whose stars are very much on the rise; besides the latest Star Wars movie, Nyong’o will also be playing (or, at the least, voicing) a character in next year’s live-action The Jungle Book adaptation from Disney, while Christie is joining the Huger Games cast for the upcoming Mockingjay installments (as mentioned in the Lucasfilm press release).

Here is the press release announcing the roles:

Lupita Nyong’o joins the recently announced cast of Star Wars: Episode VII. This year, her breakthrough performance in 12 Years a Slave earned her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Gwendoline Christie, currently starring in the hit television series Game of Thrones as Brienne of Tarth, has also been cast in the production. She can next be seen in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.

“I could not be more excited about Lupita and Gwendoline joining the cast of Episode VII,” says Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. “It’s thrilling to see this extraordinarily talented ensemble taking shape.”

Actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join the original stars of the Saga Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film.

Star Wars: Episode VII is being directed by J.J. Abrams from a screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and Abrams. Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams, and Bryan Burk are producing, and John Williams returns as the composer. The movie opens worldwide on December 18, 2015.