Not so long ago in a theme park not so far away, George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to Disney for $4.05 billion dollars.

The deal gives the Walt Disney Company the rights to all of the Star Wars films, and they’ve already announced the plan to film new movies for the series with Episode VII coming out in 2015.

Lucas made a statement concerning the purchase.

“For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next. It’s now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers.”

Lucas also said that he has faith that the Star Wars brand will flourish under Disney and there is a great potential for new films, television shows, interactive media, theme parks, live entertainment and other consumer products.

For fans, the Disney purchase comes as a mixed blessing.

Some fans like Daniel Taylor, a senior criminal justice major, see the purchase as a great opportunity for Star Wars fans.

“I think it’s absolutely amazing,” said Taylor.  “Throw some new writers in there. It can be a lot better than Episodes I-III  because they were very disappointing.”

While some fans have a positive outlook on the future of the Star Wars franchise, there are many who are not so optimistic.

With the prequels fresh in mind, fans like Joe Ussery, a senior kinesiology major, are wary of the attempt to create new Star Wars films.

“I don’t think they should keep going with it.  The movies are classic and adding to them would taint that, especially if they don’t live up to the standards of the previous ones,” Ussery said.

Those who feel more positive about the new movies are quick to point out Disney’s impressive track records with successful franchises such as Pirates of the Caribbean, and more recently, The Avengers.

For now, only time will tell if Disney will stay true to the Star Wars legacy, or if they will turn to the dark side.

All that can be said is, “May the Force be with the Disney executives.”