Some very exciting news has just hit the net (though it's been quietly talked about for a good while now): Fanboys will screen at San Diego Comic Con later this week, on Thursday, July 24, and will apparently hit theaters this September. Finally! First, for the Con news: Tickets for this special screening will be given away to the first 300 people in line at the Lucasfilm's 7th Annual Star Wars Fan Movie Challenge, held on Thursday at 8:30pm in Ballroom 20. Fanboys director Kyle Newman will be on hand to introduce some footage during the awards ceremony before the full-length screening at 10:30pm. Right on!

But then came this quote from the film's producer Kevin Spacey: "I could not be more excited that 'Fanboys' is being released this September and is the version of the film that the fans want. I am enormously grateful to Jedi Knight Harvey Weinstein for having allowed Trigger Street to restore "Fanboys" to its original story and am thrilled that it will first screen during Comic-Con." Unfortunately, an exact date did not follow those words, but it's definitely nice to know the film will arrive (hopefully in theaters and NOT straight to DVD) with its original story in only a month or so from now. Double right on!

You bet Cinematical will be attending this screening, and we'll try our best to get you folks the inside word from the Fanboys creators as it all goes down. May the force be with you ... and feel free to read the official press release after the jump.

[via IESB]

Trigger Street Productions and The Weinstein Company (TWC) announced today that the highly anticipated film "Fanboys" will have an exclusive screening of the film during this year's Comic-Con International Convention. Tickets will be given away to the first 300 people in line at the Lucasfilm's 7th Annual Star Wars Fan Movie Challenge Awards, held on July 24th at 8:30pm in Ballroom 20 at the San Diego Convention Center. During the Awards Ceremony director Kyle Newman will introduce select footage from the film, providing fans a sneak peak of the full-length feature to be shown at 10:30pm that same evening.

In the preceding months, Star Wars fans across the globe had generated a remarkable grassroots campaign, demonstrating unanimous support for the main character's battle with cancer to remain in the storyline of the film. In response to this widespread zeal, the filmmakers incorporated extensive feedback into the final cut.

"I could not be more excited that 'Fanboys' is being released this September and is the version of the film that the fans want," said "Fanboys" producer Kevin Spacey. "I am enormously grateful to Jedi Knight Harvey Weinstein for having allowed Trigger Street to restore "Fanboys" to its original story and am thrilled that it will first screen during Comic-Con. We believe in this film and are honored that George Lucas and all his team gave us permission to film Skywalker Ranch and let us have so much fun with Star Wars. We also have a couple of surprises in the film that I think will bring added enjoyment to all the fans of Lucas' great and epic movies and Trigger Street is proud to have produced this film and to have kept the dark side at bay."

"Speaking for everyone involved in the project, we are truly grateful for all the passion the fans have shown the film," stated director Kyle Newman. "Their support has been nothing short of phenomenal and I couldn't think of a better place in the world than San Diego during Comic-Con to unveil the final cut of 'Fanboys.'"

"If this movie doesn't show that Lucasfilm has a sense of humor, nothing will!" said Howard Roffman, President of Lucas Licensing. "We were happy to give them permission to have some fun with Star Wars and salute our incredible fans at the same time."

Set in 1998 the film, starring Jay Baruchel ("Knocked Up," "Million Dollar Baby"), Tony Award Winner Dan Fogler ("Kung Fu Panda," "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee"), Sam Huntington ("Superman Returns," "Not Another Teen Movie"), Chris Marquette ("The Girl Next Door," "Another World"), and Kristen Bell ("Forgetting Sarah Marshall," "Pulse") is a heart-warming comedy that follows a group of young, passionate Star Wars fans on a cross-country quest to break into George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch and watch "Star Wars: Episode 1- The Phantom Menace," before it's released.

"Fanboys" is a production of Trigger Street Productions and Picture Machine. The film is directed by Kyle Newman and produced by Kevin Spacey, Dana Brunetti, Evan Astrowsky and Matthew Perniciaro. The script was written by Kyle Newman, Adam Goldberg and Ernest Cline and Kevin Mann serve as executive producer.