And another big geek name reportedly joins Episode IX… Matt Smith (The Crown, Doctor Who in a “key role,” Variety reports.
Smith is best known as the Eleventh Doctor on Doctor Who from 2010-2013, while he most recently received an Emmy nomination for playing Prince Phillip in Netflix’s The Crown.
If this pans out, he’ll be the third Doctor to have a Star Wars role in recent years, though the first in a film. His Who predecessor, 10th Doctor David Tennant, voiced Jedi training droid Huyang in The Clone Wars, while 4th Doctor Tom Baker voiced the pivotal role of Bendu in S3 of Rebels. With two of the three trilogies filmed in the U.K., there’s a wealth of other crossovers between the two franchises, including a weird stint with Peter Cushing in the 60s. Other Who alumni to have appeared in Star Wars include Rogue One’s Felicity Jones, IX’s Richard E. Grant and Naomi Ackie. And going the other way around, Warwick Davis guest-starred in a 2013 episode during Smith’s tenure.