Benedict Cumberbatch will not be in the "Star Wars: Episode VII."
A day after the British star was rumored to be cast in the film the New York Daily News is reporting that the rumor is not true. "There is no truth to the rumour Benedict has been cast in 'Star Wars.' I think the rumours are circling because JJ and Benedict have just recently had a wonderful time working together on 'Star Trek,'" reported the Daily News.
Cumberbatch recently showed interest in the project when he told Total Film that he loved "Star Wars" and had asked director J.J Abrams to cast him in the film. He stated, "I've already asked him [Abrams] if I can be a lightsaber and we're in talks- about whirring sounds and the rates for the lights and everything [laughs]. I was much more connected to [Star Wars] as a kid, in the way that a lot of kids are because it's immediate storytelling, very simple - a beautifully, outrageously simple narrative in a way - and a wonderful three-act melodrama, opera. And I loved them. I really, really loved those films and I always wanted to be Han Solo. Everything Harrison Ford did I just thought was the coolest thing ever."
Cumberbatch has one of the busiest acting schedules this year. He will star in "The Fifth Estate," "August Osage County," "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" and "12 Years a Slave."
"Star Wars: Episode VII" is currently casting with Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill slated to reprise their roles from the original trilogy. Additionally, Anthony Daniels, Ewan McGregor and Ian McDiarmid are also rumored to appear in the film.
"Episode VII" is slated to begin production in January with Disney releasing the film in 2015.