J.J. Abrams reveals movie 'time frame' was why Michael Arndt left 'Star Wars Episode VII' script writing job to be replaced by director & Lawrence Kasdan

According to a revealing interview with J.J. Abrams, the controversy over Michael Arndt departing as the scriptwriter for 2015's Star Wars Episode VII was simply a time concern. Arndt's departure last month lead to Abrams taking over with Lawrence Kasdan, the writer of The Empire Strikes Back, coming in to finish the script as well. Now Abrams has revealed the details around this situation.

"It became clear that given the time frame and given the process and the way the thing was going that working with Larry in this way was going to get us where we need to be and when we needed to be," the Star Trek director explained. "Working with Larry Kasdan, especially on a Star Wars movie is kind of unbeatable."

Clearly replacing Arndt, one of Hollywood's best screenwriters, with Kasdan, who wrote arguably the best Star Wars films, is an exciting venture. But Abrams also considers it the best possible step in the right direction for Episode VII.

"Working with Michael was a wonderful experience and I couldn't be a bigger fan of his or adore him more," Abrams said of the departed Arndt. "He's a wonderful guy and was incredibly helpful in the process. [This event] doesn't preclude working with Michael again in the future, he is one of the best writers around."

Perhaps Arndt will eventually come back for the Episode VIII or IX, but as of now he has moved on from the project to focus on other aspects and Abrams is happy with how things are moving along.