‘Star Wars: Episode 7′ May Expand Oscar Isaac’s Role Following Harrison Ford Injury

Earlier this week, we speculated that 'Star Wars: Episode 7' could see its release date pushed to 2016 due to the severity of Harrison Ford's on-set injury; once thought to be a broken ankle that would keep him out two months, now confirmed to be a broken leg that may mean upwards of six months of rehab. Disney and Lucasfilm would like to do everything they can to avoid having to move the release date again, and one of the things they're reportedly ready to do is expanding Oscar Isaac's role in the film.

According to Page Six - which, full disclosure: is the gossip column of the New York Post - "they are now beefing up Oscar’s role to be bigger with Harrison injured."

A few things before we proceed...

Later, in that same article, Page Six says their same source who earlier reported that Isaac's role was being "beefed up" now tells them "no characters were being dramatically expanded." And, when they reached out to Disney for comment on the expansion of Oscar Isaac's role, they were told, "This is categorically not true."

So, yes, it's very possible this isn't true. Disney is denying it and Page Six's own sources seem to refute their own account. But, as we've previously mentioned, something has to give. If Disney and Lucasfilm are adamant that they keep their December 18, 2015 release date, they're going to have to find some clever workaround for Ford's injury. While we're still unclear really as to what role Oscar Isaac is playing in the film, we've heard some details on Han Solo's role in 'Star Wars: Episode 7' and he's very much the lead character driving the plot forward. (Where's Luke Skywalker, you ask? Well, I think that's probably a question Han and friends are also wondering...) With Ford playing the lead role in the movie, there's only so much rescheduling the order of filming scenes you can do as your star rehabs from a broken leg.

We've yet to hear a formal update from Lucasfilm and Disney on the matter and it's possible, given J.J. Abrams' proclivity towards secrecy, that we may never hear one. But, decisions are being made about the future of 'Star Wars: Episode 7' right now and it will be interesting to see how it all plays out.