A new era for the Star Wars franchise is upon us, with director J.J. Abrams' Star Wars: The Force Awakens hitting theaters in just two weeks. Next year will bring the release of Disney and LucasFilm's first spinoff, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (December 16, 2016), with Star Wars: Episode VIII (May 26, 2017), Star Wars Anthology: Han Solo Movie (May 25, 2018), Star Wars: Episode IX (2019) and a Third Star Wars Spin-Off Movie (2020) set to follow. Last month, a new report claimed that Disney and LucasFilm are planning to put out a new Star Wars movie every year, indefinitely. While we haven't heard any official plans for what's next after Star Wars: Episode IX, a new report from The Los Angeles Times reveals that the studios have met with a number of female filmmakers for upcoming projects.

The report reveals that William Morris Endeavor (WME) talent agent Adriana Alberghetti has secured meetings for four women directors and three female screenwriters to potentially work on unspecified Star Wars projects. While no specific names were mentioned, the agent represents female directors such as Sarah Gavron (Suffragette) and S.J. Clarkson (Marvel's Jessica Jones), and writers Marti Noxon (Fright Night) and Linda Woolverton (Alice in Wonderland). As of now, the only Star Wars project that doesn't have any filmmakers attached is the Third Star Wars Spin-Off Movie, which Josh Trank was attached to direct before he dropped out in May.

If a female filmmaker does come on board for the Third Star Wars Spin-Off Movie, which is rumored to center on Boba Fett, or any other Star Wars project, it would mark the first time a woman has either written or directed a movie in this beloved franchise. Simon Kinberg is working on the script for the Third Star Wars Spin-Off Movie, but the studio still hasn't announced a replacement for Josh Trank at the helm. We'll have to wait and see if any of these meetings set up by Adriana Alberghetti will lead to a female writer or director making Star Wars history.

Kathleen Kennedy was brought on to serve as President of LucasFilm when George Lucas stepped down, and the company also has a number of women in key creative roles, such as Director of Creative Content Strategy Carrie Beck, and Senior Vice President of Development Kiri Hart, who has been compared to Marvel Cinematic Universe architect Kevin Feige. Gender equality in Hollywood has become a hot-button topic as of late, and in a widely-discussed New York Times article, Kathleen Kennedy revealed that she never received a phone call from a female director about taking the helm on a Star Wars movie.

"I had not had one single phone call from a woman telling me that she really, really wants to direct a 'Star Wars' movie. They need to be the ones picking up the phone and saying, 'Hey, let me tell you what 'Star Wars' means to me and how much I could do with it.'"

The gender divide became so much of an issue that it lead to 44 Hollywood leaders, male and female alike, holding a two-day meeting in Los Angeles to study this issue and how it could be solved. While no specifics solutions from the meeting were revealed, The Los Angeles Times story reveals that these leaders have decided to develop a seal of approval, given to TV shows and movies that have shown progress in addressing diversity issues. What do you think about future Star Wars movies being written and directed by women?