'Star Wars' is actively looking for a female director, wants more diversity in franchise

Following reports that some of the biggest decision-makers in Hollywood got together in a secret meeting to come up with ways to address gender bias in the industry, the L.A. Times now reports that the "Star Wars" franchise is actively looking to hire females for the creative side of its upcoming projects.

WME agent Adriana Alberghetti, who was at the secret gathering, told the paper that since then, she's set up meetings with four female directors and three female writers for upcoming "Star Wars" films.

Those "Star Wars" projects could be for the episodes in the saga following "Episode VII: The Force Awakens," which opens on December 18, or the franchise's anthology films. Remember, a director slot is still open for the the spin-off project that "Fantastic Four" director Josh Trank left (if you believe the rumors, it's supposed to focus on Boba Fett).

This makes sense, given Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy's comment earlier this year that "There's nothing we'd like more than to find a female director for 'Star Wars.'"

Lucasfilm appears driven to have diverse voices lead the saga going forward. That is evident with the casting of John Boyega and Daisy Ridley, a black man and a woman, as the main leads in "The Force Awakens."

And according to another L.A. Times story, Kathleen Kennedy confirmed that the female villain in "Awakens," Captain Phasma (Gwendoline Christie), will be in "Episode VIII."

"She's an important character," Kennedy told the paper, "a baddie in the best sense of the word."