Why Guillermo Del Toro Turned Down Directing The New 'Star Wars' Film

J.J. Abrams turned down working on the new "Star Wars" because he's a diehard Trekkie.

Now, director Guillermo del Toro has confirmed that he was also approached to work on Disney's continuation of the franchise.

However, don't expect to see his hand in any future "Star Wars" projects anytime soon either.

Del Toro told Indiewire.com's The Playlist he he has too much on his plate.

"We got one phone call to my agent saying, 'Is Guillermo interested?'," said Del Toro. "And basically I have so much stuff already of my own, and I'm pursuing stuff that I'm generating already."

Here's what Del Toro has lined up in the coming year:

• Monster movie "Pacific Rim"

• The second "Hobbit" film in the trilogy (he worked on the screenplay)

• An Incredible Hulk television series slated for 2014.

Instead, Del Toro said his pick to helm the new film would be Pixar's Brad Bird who helped bring "Up," "Toy Story 3," and, most recently, "Brave" to life.

The new "Star Wars" is scheduled for a 2015 release.

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