R2D2 is the first confirmed caharacter for 'Star Wars Episode VII' & was built by 2 fans for the 2015 J.J. Abrams movie

After a little over a year of casting and plot rumors surrounding Star Wars Episode VII, we can finally share an officially confirmed character for the 2015 movie. Fan-favorite droid R2D2 will be appearing in the brand new film directed by J.J. Abrams! Not only will R2 be back, but also the new version of the character was actually built by two Star Wars fans for the Disney production.

Just last week, J.J. Abrams' production company Bad Robot posted a photo of the director, producer Kathleen Kennedy, and R2D2 on Twitter, but this week the confirmation came. Plus the news that fans Lee Towersey and Oliver Steeples actually built this new R2 adds to the excitement.

"It all started when Kathleen Kennedy toured the R2-D2 Builders area at Celebration Europe this past summer in Germany," Steeples said. "She posed for pictures with us, looked at all the droids we'd built and was very complimentary. I mentioned that the R2-D2 Builders in the UK were available if required, as a semi-joke. When I was contacted to work on the film by [executive producer] Jason McGatlin, it was on her recommendation."

These two have build R2D2's for countless promotional and fan events, but working on the droid for the actual movie is a dream come true for them.

"What we do need to do is improve on the mechanics," Towersey said. "We're currently in a research and design phase where we're looking at drive options for reliability on all possible terrains, whether it be a one-motor-does-all, or a system which is easily adjusted depending on terrain. We have a few mocked up ideas which we hope to road test very soon."