It has been revealed today that Forest Whitaker has joined the cast of Gareth Edwards’ Star Wars: Rogue One. There are no details on who the veteran character actor (and Oscar winner) will play in the movie, but he joins an impressive cast which includes Felicity Jones, Riz Ahmed, Diego Luna and Ben Mendelsohn.
The movie is set between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, and will tell the story of a group of Rebels who set out to steal the plans of the first Death Star. Jones, Ahmed, and Luna are all expected to play members of the Rebellion, but both Whitaker and Mendelsohn remain a mystery.
The former is also said to be in talks to join The Crow, the upcoming reboot of the James O’Barr comic book.
That’s a great addition to the cast, but with that good news comes bad. Boardwalk Empire’s Jack Huston was set to take on the lead role, but “is unfortunately unavailable to continue with us on ‘The Crow,'” says director Corin Hardy. “‘The Crow’ is an amazing project, and I am grateful that we have the time and patience to get it right. We look forward to unveiling our new lead and starting to film over the next several weeks.”
He’s the second leading man to depart the project (the first was Luke Evans), and Variety adds that Nicholas Hoult and Jack O’Connell are among those being considered to take over. We’ll just have to wait and see!
