Has "Star Wars: Episode VII" already found its screenwriter? News of a new film in the "Star Wars" series broke after Disney purchased Lucasfilm for 4.05 billion only a week ago, and now it looks like producers are already vetting writers to pen the screenplay.

"A leading candidate" currently being considered to write the screenplay for "Episode VII" is Oscar-winning writer Michael Arndt ("Little Miss Sunshine," "Toy Story 3"), reports Vulture.

The website says "reliable sources" tipped them off that a 40-50 page treatment for the film from Arndt is hitting the desks of some very prominent directors, and decision-makers. Brad Bird, Steven Spielberg (the former producing partner of Lucasfilm co-chair Kathleen Kennedy), and J.J. Abrams will all be reading the treatment, reports Vulture. "Whether they're interested is unknown, but Disney wants to make sure they've at least tried the biggest names," says Vulture.

Arndt will likely be at least one of the writers for the Disney-produced movie, which is expected to begin filming in 2014, for a 2015 release.

Arndt has become a hot commodity in Hollywood since his Oscar-winning script for "Little Miss Sunshine" and Oscar-nominated writing in "Toy Story 3," and also wrote the script for the upcoming "Hunger Games" sequel, "Catching Fire," which is filming now.

He's also reportedly a "Star Wars" expert, according to Vulture. Clearly, that tidbit makes him a frontrunner immediately for many fans, a sentiment that "Lost" co-creator and writer of the upcoming "Star Trek" film Damon Lindelof echoed, "If this is true, Michael Arndt is the perfect choice. We're in good hands, fellow nerds," he Tweeted after hearing the news.

Arndt has lectured extensively on the art of storytelling at numerous writers' retreats, like the Hawaii Writers Conference in Maui and the Austin Film Festival, always featuring a lengthy and detailed explanation of why the original "Star Wars" ending is so creatively satisfying.

According to Vulture, Arndt had been at work on the treatment long before the deal between Disney and Lucasfilm was announced.

Entertainment Weekly reported Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, and Carrie Fisher were interested in reprising their roles in "Episode VII" earlier in the week.

"Harrison is open to the idea of doing the movie and he's upbeat about it, all three of them are," an unnamed source claimed to Entertainment Weekly, referring to the 70-year-old Han Solo actor, along with his original co-stars Hamill, and Fisher.

Hamill revealed he and Fisher had found out about the new films two months ago when Lucas took the pair to lunch. "He said, 'We decided we're going to do Episodes VII, VIII, and IX,'" Hamill told EW.com. "I was just gobsmacked. 'What? Are you nuts?!'"

Lucas biographer Dale Pollock commented on Lucasfilm's sale, and Episode VII at large, and assured fans that Disney will almost certainly be using Lucas's outlines for the next three films. "Writers will absolutely take his outline," Pollock said. "That's in part what Disney bought."