Rumor: Potential Details Revealed About 'Star Wars 7' Villains [UPDATED]

UPDATE: Long running Star Wars site TheForce.net says this rumor is unequivocally, 100% false. However, they don't cite a source. We've left the original story below.

This might be total BS. We're going to be honest about that. But reading this new information was interesting and fun, and even if it may not be true, why deny you the same joy? Let the Star Wars speculation continue!

As you all know by now, we know nothing of the plot to Star Wars Episode VII. We know the original characters are back, thirty years have passed, and some younger actors play new characters. That's it. We can safely assume there will be Jedi, but there's no real pulse on the bad guys. You see, at the end of Return of the Jedi, Luke Skywalker defeated the Sith, returning balance to the Force. However, characters revealed in other canon stories (mainly Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels) could potentially still be around. We simply don't know.

Now, a new article has some exciting speculation on the topic, with at least a potential hint of truth. The team at Making Star Wars have some info they believe to be from actual Star Wars insiders on who and what the Star Wars 7 villains are. More over, they may also have an idea of how those villains figure into the entire sequel trilogy.

Suffice to say, if any of this is true, this information contains both minor and major spoilers. We'll differentiate after the jump.

This information all originates on MakingStarWars where, they offer a long, bolded, big-font disclaimer that includes the following:

This is simply what we are hearing from people that have proven to us that are from Pinewood. I don't want anyone to get their hopes up or down for that matter. But let it be known, this is what we are heard in the last two weeks and it could be accurate or inaccurate.

So all that said – minor spoilers to start.

The article says people making Star Wars Episode VII are referring to the bad guys as "Jedi Hunters." They're dressed in black, use lightsabers, and hunt Jedi. However they're not necessarily Sith. They just hate the Jedi. Apparently, they also have foot soldiers who look like Storm Troopers, but in black and chrome.

Now, yes, this sounds very much like the Inquisitor in Star Wars Rebels but according to MakingStarWars, no one who gave them this information every used that character's name. It sounds very likely, however, they're related in some way and Lupita Nyong'o and Adam Driver are playing two of them. The report also says David Oyelowo is part of the cast, which has not been confirmed via Lucasfilm. Rumor has it he was going to be a voice on Rebels so, maybe, The Inquisitor? (UPDATE: TheForce.net reminds us Oyelowo is not playing the Inquisitor, but there's no guarantee he's in the film anyway.)

Now, onto the potentially major spoilers. Like, possible Episode VIII and IX spoilers. Beware. Highlight to read.

According to the article, the Jedi Hunters have been around for a long time and were tasked with protecting the Sith. Once the Sith were destroyed, they began to rise up and disturb the growth of the Jedi. So that's what Luke Skywalker has been doing for the past 30 years, attempting to stop the "Jedi Hunters." One scene that was reportedly filmed includes the "Jedi Hunters" worshiping the Sith. The rumor is their goal is to resurrect at Sith and will succeed at the end of Episode VIII, which will then lead to the conflict in Episodes IX.

There's more detail and speculation at this link but, that's the gist.

Once again, this might just be someone confusing Star Wars Rebels with Star Wars Episode VII, or maybe it's just totally made up. Whether it's true or not, it's an interesting thread to start unraveling about how J.J. Abrams could potentially reinvent Star Wars.

What do you think about these Star Wars 7 villain rumors?