A recent rumor claimed that Jodie Comer (28 Years Later, Killing Eve, The Bikeriders) might be in talks for an undisclosed role alongside Ryan Gosling in Deadpool and Wolverine director Shawn Levy's untitled Star Wars movie, and we're now hearing that Lucasfilm may have zeroed in on an actor to play the villain.
According to scooper Daniel Richtman, Jesse Plemons (Breaking Bad, Civil War) "has the offer" to play the mysterious film's big bad.
A separate rumor is claiming that Plemons is also being eyed to play a young Plutarch Heavensbee in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, so it'll be interesting to see if he winds up in one or both (unlikely) of these roles.
Plemons is no stranger to villainous roles, and was actually said to be in the running to play Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens prior to Adam Driver landing the part.
Apparently, the movie will "have a significantly smaller budget" than the previous Disney-era films, and is described as "a more contained" story. Gosling's unnamed lead is also said to be accompanied by a younger character who is a Jedi Padawan.
This had led to speculation that the movie could be set in an era when the Jedi were still active (likely before the events of A New Hope), but Lucasfilm's Kathleen Kennedy has since confirmed that it will actually be a post-The Rise of Skywalker story.
Levy has been developing the script with Jonathan Tropper (This Is Where I Leave You, The Adam Project) since 2022, and is also set to produce via 21 Laps, along with Lucasfilm president (though for how much longer) Kathleen Kennedy.
Plot and character details are still under wraps, but we do know what - and who - the story won't focus on, as it's been confirmed that the film will be a standalone adventure that isn’t connected in any way to the Skywalker Saga.
Following the massive success of Deadpool and Wolverine, Levy is reportedly viewed by Disney as "a must-have, must-keep" director, so there's a good chance he will have a significant amount of creative control over the movie. Gosling's involvement is expected to fast-track the project, with production tentatively scheduled to get underway In the UK later this year.
"I'll say that the experience of crafting this story has forced me to think about that question," Levy said last year when asked what he hopes to bring to the table with his trip to the Galaxy Far, Far Away. "Because there's only so many times that Star Wars movies can revisit the same section of the timeline, and so it's really forced me - because I don't want to do a Star Wars movie that is redundant to others, nor am I interested in doing one that has to serve another movie."
"I really wanted to craft something that felt organic to me, both in tone and characters, so I think that there is certainly the Force and a connection to something bigger than our individual selves. And the way that that can make us powerful, those themes, combined with visual delight and wish fulfilment, that's Star Wars to me."
Lucasfilm also has Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy's Rey-focused movie, James Mangold's Dawn of the Jedi (probably not the official title), and Dave Filoni's "Mandoverse" crossover event in the works.