The Wrap is reporting that Benicio del Toro “has the offer” to play the villain in Episode VIII. You may recognize del Toro as The Collector from Guardians of the Galaxy, and (more interestingly, perhaps) he was at one point in talks to play J.J. Abrams’ Khan in Star Trek Into Darkness.
Variety is doubling down with their own sources. They say Lucasfilm really wants an A-list talent in the part – and that they also met with Joaquin Phoenix. (And The Hollywood Reporter makes three.)
del Toro would be a nice get for Star Wars, so it’ll be interesting to see if this goes through. Episode VIII, which is being directed by Rian Johnson, is currently set for a May 26, 2017 release.
Do we really need A-list talent for every role in Star Wars? i suppose genre is no longer the ghetto of the acting world.
I think that ended when they started getting A-listers for superhero films. This would be (at least) the second time Joaquin Phoenix has turned down Disney, remember he was heavily rumored for Doctor Strange? (Supposedly Oscar Isaac got offered that one, too.)