Good.    Glad to see it confirmed.  Forcing the filmmakers to adhere to the post-ROTJ EU would be the equivalent of painting them into a story telling corner.  It was tough enough for George Lucas to make certain that he hit all the notes to set the stage in the prequels for the known backstory of the OT.  Expecting the Sequel Trilogy to do the same with stories that barely got George Lucas's attention would be a terrible thing to do.  It would kill any surprise that could come from these new movies.

In other more pertinent news, the budget for the movie has been roughly set at close to $200 million.  And 2nd unit photography has begun in Abu Dhabi.  Casting announcements appear to be coming soon, but according to Horn, he wants to leave that announcement to the filmmakers.

Fox, the studio behind the X-Men film franchise, recognizes that this case has the potential to hurt the financial success of the movie.  And now they're circling the wagons.

Bryan Singer had been scheduled to do a bunch of press in advance of the release of the movie.  That included an appearance at Wondercon in California this past weekend.  Fox had a sizable panel discussion to discuss their upcoming projects, and X-Men - Days of Future Past was slated to be a major component of the presentation which also included Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.  Bryan Singer was not only a no-show, but his name wasn't even mentioned.  The Director of the film...NOT EVEN MENTIONED.  You may want to let that sink in.  Writer/producer Simon Kinberg stepped in to lead the panel, and the X-Men presentation was scaled back immensely, with most of the panel focus going to the new Planet of the Apes movie.  Oh, and there were no questions allowed during the X-Men portion of the panel.

And it's not just Fox that's pulled back from Bryan Singer.  Disney, which owns the ABC television network, is revamping the promos for a new show called Black Box, and they're pulling any mention of Singer from those as well.

Film is very much a director's medium.  And a scandal like this will definitely follow a director and can financially hurt their films.  As for the implications of what Singer is accused of?  This isn't a case of someone over-indulging in booze or drugs.  This isn't over a DWI with an embarrassing mugshot.  This is about a sexual assault case involving a minor that could have led to significant criminal charges had it been dealt with in an appropriate timeframe.  And these accusations have been leveled against the DIRECTOR of the film.  The one filmmaker that is most responsible for this particular movie.  All of the cast and crew have been paid.  As for anyone else getting hurt by poor attendance for this movie?  Those would be people who get points and backend money from the movie.  Most studios are reluctant to give up that sort of interest in a project.  But generally a producer/director would get points.  Whether or not you want to see the movie is a judgement call you need to make for yourself.

I already had some qualms about seeing this movie BEFORE this news came to light.  The story alone is one of the most legendary story arcs in the history of the X-Men comics.  Could a film ever do it justice?

And now?  I really feel that I cannot in good conscience go to see this movie.

Looks like some dribs and drabs of late wave Marvel Universe figures are still making it out there.  I just found both Abomination figures last night as well as this morning at some local stores.

I wonder how many Bothans are going to sacrifice their careers to bring us spoilers?

The site that ran this earlier updated the original posting with the following:

EDIT: Lucasfilm contacted Bad Robot and confirmed this memo is a forgery! Darkness is everywhere! Foul play is afoot!

I would expect anyone working for Bad Robot has signed an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) either upon being hired or for every individual project.  It's a standard business practice for many a media company.  Very likely everyone involved with Episode VII production has already signed an NDA, and that document would look radically different from the forgery on that site.

Obi-Wan having a family or children is an interesting prospect.  Some of the EU had him close with another padawan.  And we also saw the storyline between him and Satine in Clone Wars.  So there's some potential backstory there to show that Obi-Wan may have strayed from the monastic life of the Jedi. 

Another angle?  Obi-Wan was witness to Order 66, and knew that the Empire was hunting down the Jedi.  He was also aware of Anakin and Padme's relationship and that their children could be that potential new hope for the Jedi, or perhaps a new apprentice for the Sith.  With that in mind Obi-Wan may have wanted to make sure that a Force sensitive child might carry on his own legacy.

I think I have a man-crush on Bronn. While the big wedding dominated the episode, the brief scene of Bronn training Jaimie was my favorite part.

Bronn training with Jaime Lannister is a change from the books.  In the books Jaime trains with Ser Ilyn Payne, the King's Justice.  IIRC, the last we've seen of Ser Ilyn was in the season 2 episode "Blackwater".

Truth be told, I'm fine with the change if these training sessions between Jaime and Bronn continue.  I think Bronn is a fantastic character and I'd like to see him continue to be in the mix.