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Ah yes, the list the entire universe (including us) saw coming yesterday. After the news that Lucasfilm was developing a new Star Wars trilogy came out, the first question fans asked was obvious; what the hell would it be about? And well we talked about the direction in which the new trilogy could go in yesterday, today we’ll cover the SECOND most popular question that fans asked following the announcement; who will Disney hire to direct it? And even though they probably won’t be chosen for the gig, here’s who we’d like to see in the director’s chair for the new set of Star Wars films.

Steven Spielberg

Since this list is basically a gigantic nerd circle jerk anyways, let’s just go all out for the first choice. Spielberg was in the running to direct Return of the Jedi way back in the 80’s, but backed out due to a feud he was having at the time with the Directors Guild of America. And well that was disappointing, now that Lucas is pretty much off Star Wars, I’m sure he would be happy with his best friends taking on the reigns. Oh and it would be freaking incredible. There’s that too. Then again, since he’s recently dismissed the idea of doing more action films, who knows if this could EVER come to fruition.

J.J. Abrams

But if you can’t get it to the iconic director himself, then you can always give it to his protégé! J.J. Abrams is more than versed in sci-fi, what with Lost and Super 8 peppering his resume. He’s also a huge Star Wars fan, and has spoken openly about his love of the franchise. The only thing serving an issue here is Abrams current commitment to the Star Trek franchise over at Paramount. Since that series is essentially Star Wars now (for better or worse), I’m not sure if Abrams would even want to do another sci-fi epic in space. But if Star Trek never existed, you better bet that Abrams would have taken the project almost instantly.

Brad Bird

Hey if not Abrams, bring on another Bad Robot alum with Brad Bird. Not only is Bird an excellent and imaginative director (The Incredibles remains one of my favorite films ever), but he’s also one of the brain trust (a.k.a All Star Super Awesome Team of Animation) over at Pixar which, yes, is also owned by Disney. He has connections in that company obviously and, following his first foray into live action (the excellent Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol), I’m excited to see what this guy can do in the live action format. And Star Wars could be the perfect property for the man to tackle.

Duncan Jones

Jones is a relative new comer to the industry with only two films to his name…but they’re both excellent science fiction tales. Moon was incredible, one of the best space stories since 2001. And well Source Code has its issues, its overall a solid film with an concept at its forefront. Since those films, Jones has been relatively quiet, with nothing really in development at this point. But since he’s made some of the best science fiction films of the past few year, I think he’s more than capable to helm a new Star Wars picture.

Guillermo del Toro

Alright, that’s all the realistic choices…love move back into the realm of never going to happen with the one, the only Guillermo del Toro! Del Toro is kind of an icon for geeks like us, what with his great eye for visuals and overall design. Take for instance the Troll Market in Hellboy II. That’s like the Cantina Bar scene, but about 5x more impressive! He’ll be taking his first real foray into sci-fi next year with the huge sci-fi epic Pacific Rim and, although he has more than his fair share of projects in the pipeline, his aesthetic would be perfectly suited for the world of Star Wars. And being a huge freaking nerd too doesn’t hurt.

Joss Whedon

Let’s end this list with a huge geek heart attack inducing bang; what would happen if Joss Whedon was handed the reins of the Star Wars universe? First of all, there is zero chance of that happening—Whedon is more than busy handling the Marvel properties, and almost certainly doesn’t have the time to enter another huge geek franchise. But since this entire list is almost pure fantasy anyways, just imagine it; Whedon essentially made his Star Wars with Firefly, although we really never got to see where that would have developed over the years if it hadn’t been cancelled (Serenity aside). And he proved he was more than capable of huge sci-fi action with The Avengers this year. And knowing Whedon, he’s probably a huge Star Wars fan. Improbable? Hell yes. But it would be pretty freaking cool to see a Joss Whedon Star Wars, yes?

And that’s our list! Like I said, I seriously doubt any of these men will actually get the gig—but that doesn’t mean we can’t dream! So well we’re in dreamland, let me ask you: who would you pick to helm the new Star Wars movie? Let us know in the comments!

-Matthew