The first bit of casting news for "Star Wars: Episode VII" has finally arrived. Adam Driver has reportedly been cast to star as the film's new villain.
According to Variety, Driver will play a villain that is in the mold of the iconic Darth Vader. This implies two things. First, the franchise seems to be intent on parting ways with Darth Vader. Second, it seems intent on keeping the iconic villain in the franchise, albeit in a referential manner.
It is a rather contradictory message but an understandable one nonetheless. Darth Vader is Star Wars. When one mentions the franchise, he is the first image that usually pops up. And is breathing is also probably the first sound to come to mind—aside from the lightsaber sounds, of course.
Many wondered how the franchise would move ahead without him; after all, his absence in the first two prequels was a major point of criticism. From a marketing standpoint, getting rid of Darth Vader is a risky proposition. For this reason, it is inevitable that the new villain would somehow resemble Vader.
However, it was ultimately essential to break from Vader in some way. Early reports indicate that the new film will be a sort of "final hurrah" for original trilogy heroes Luke, Leia and Han; it seems that director J.J. Abrams wants to slowly move in a new direction, but still wants fans to have some sense of closure. Bringing in a new villain is simply another step—and a necessary one—to break the umbilical cord with George Lucas' original films.
It will be interesting to see how Driver's villain is integrated into the story and how he'll be similar to Vader. Is he another fallen Jedi-turned-Sith Lord? Is he a Sith Lord that has some deformity that forces him to be a half-cyborg, like Darth Malak in "Knights of the Old Republic"? Will he have an iconic breathing sound? Will he have a special force power akin to Vader's force choke?
Driver is best known for his work on the TV series "Girls." He made a brief appearance in Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" in 2012 and also appeared in the Coen brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis." Driver also starred in a number of small independent film projects including "Frances Ha," "The F Word" and "Bluebird" among others. He is slated to appear in "This is Where I Leave You," "Hungry Hearts" and "While We're Young." He is filming "Midnight Special" and is slated to appear in Martin Scorsese's "Silence"; one must wonder how the "Star Wars" project will ultimately alter his schedule.
"Star Wars: Episode VII" is slated to hit theaters in December 2015 and is expected to star Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford, though there has been no official confirmation of their involvement with the project.
Variety claims that the movie will start where "Return of the Jedi" left off. The story is also expected to feature a number of young stars that will take over the franchise in subsequent installments.
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