‘Star Wars’ casts Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o, ‘Game Of Thrones’ actress Gwendoline Christie

Jun 02 (TheWrap.com) - Hot off winning an Oscar for her breakout supporting performance in "12 Years a Slave," Lupita Nyong'o has joined the cast of "Star Wars: Episode VII," Disney and Lucasfilm announced Monday.

Additionally, Gwendoline Christie, who currently stars as Brienne of Tarth on HBO's hit series "Game of Thrones," has also been added to the ensemble in an unspecified capacity. She can next be seen in "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2."

"I could not be more excited about Lupita and Gwendoline joining the cast of Episode VII," said Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy. "It's thrilling to see this extraordinarily talented ensemble taking shape."

Nyong'o's casting had been rumored for several weeks after word leaked that she had met with J.J. Abrams just before the Academy Awards. By recruiting Nyong'o and Christine, Abrams has addressed the primary criticism fans had of the film's first casting news — the lack of women in the "Star Wars" universe.

Actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, and Max von Sydow will join the original stars of the Saga Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker in the new film.

J.J. Abrams is directing "Star Wars: Episode VII" from a script he co-wrote with Lawrence Kasdan. Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams, and Bryan Burk are producing, and John Williams returns as the composer.

Disney will release the new "Star Wars" chapter on Dec. 18, 2015.

Nyong'o, who recently signed on to voice a role in Disney's "The Jungle Book," is represented by CAA.