'Star Wars: Episode 9' news, release date: 'Episode 9' to be shot on 65mm film, Kodak confirms

Unlike the first two films in the current "Star Wars" sequel trilogy, the upcoming "Star Wars: Episode 9" will be shot on 65mm film.

According to The Playlist, Kodak has announced that its film processing facility in the U.K. is now capable of handling 65mm film. The company has a list of upcoming movies that will be processed at this facility, and one of them is "Star Wars: Episode 9," which will be helmed by "Jurassic World" director Colin Trevorrow.

The decision to shoot the trilogy-capping film entirely on 65mm film, which is similar to IMAX, is a departure from the method used by "Star Wars: Episode 7 - The Force Awakens" (2015) director J.J. Abrams and "Star Wars: Episode 8" (2017) director Rian Johnson.

Abrams famously made the decision to do away with digital and shoot "The Force Awakens" using 35mm Kodak film. Collider notes that Johnson initially wanted to shoot "Episode 8" on 65mm, but because of logistical issues, he had to go with 35mm. The outlet suggests that these issues may have had something to do with the previous lack of 65mm processing facilities in the U.K., where production on the new "Star Wars" trilogy is based. Nonetheless, Johnson's decision to stick with 35mm means that the aesthetic of "Episode 8" will be in line with that of "Episode 7."

Meanwhile, "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," which drops next month, was shot on 65mm with 6K resolution. Apart from the upcoming "Star Wars" spinoff, there have been other notable films shot on 65mm in recent years. These include Christopher Nolan's "Interstellar" (2014), Quentin Tarantino's "The Hateful Eight" (2015), and Nolan's upcoming "Dunkirk" (2017).

"Rouge One: A Star Wars Story" will be in theaters on Dec. 16.

Meanwhile, "Star Wars: Episode 8" opens on Dec. 15, 2017 and "Star Wars: Episode 9" is in cinemas on May 23, 2019.