Sorry folks - we’re all going to have to wait a little bit longer for the continued adventures of Rey, Finn and Poe.

Lucasfilm and Disney broke some hearts today, as they announced that the release date for Star Wars: Episode VIII is being pushed back - from the 40th Anniversary of A New Hope celebrating date of May 26, 2017 to the new third-straight-Star-Wars-Christmas date of December 17, 2017.

There are a few different ways to look at this, so indulge me with a few different takes…

The Optimist’s Take

Moving Star Wars: Episode VIII just gives director/writer Rian Johnson (Looper) more time to create a sequel that we’ll all love - and now that we’ve all seen The Force Awakens, deliver on the things that we really liked…while avoiding those who didn’t. Episode VIII should just be all the better for it.

The Skeptical Take

Disney really just wants to control the Christmas buying season. It’s incredibly obvious that Disney is making money hand-over-fist with the Star Wars franchise, and there’s no better way to keep fans buying merch around Christmas than by getting them excited for a new film every Christmas. (I mean, Rogue One is set for Christmas 2016, too.)

Of course - they might double down on Rey merchandise this time. Apparently they’ve learned from last time…and last time wasn’t just to avoid spoilers.

The JESUS CHRIST WHY IS EVERYTHING COMING OUT IN 2017’ Take

2017 is looking like a HUGE year for franchise movies. Now that Star Wars is moving to Christmas, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man Tell No Tales is taking the May 26, 2017 release date. Also moving around today - the Marvel/Sony Spider-Man reboot, coming out earlier on July 7, 2017, and the unnecessary Jumanji remake, pushed back from Christmas 2016, to July 28, 2017.

But the real time period to look at remains Christmas:

Episode VIII is now opening the same day as Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One, and looming around the corner on December 25, 2017 is Avatar 2, leading to a direct battle between bitter rivals for box office glory.

I wouldn’t be shocked to see Avatar 2 move back. Or not? We shall see.