Forest Whitaker joins Star Wars Anthology: Rogue One

The first Star Wars spinoff movie has added another name to its ranks, with Variety reporting that Forest Whitaker is in talks to snag a role in Star Wars Anthology: Rogue One. Should he lock down the as-yet unknown part, he’ll be appearing alongside a confirmed ensemble that includes Felicity Jones, Ben Mendelsohn, Riz Ahmed and Diego Luna.

Based on what we know so far on the Gareth Edwards-directed film, Rogue One takes place between the events of Episode III and Episode IV and follows a rogue band of resistance fighters who unite for a mission to steal plans for the Death Star. Earlier this year at the Star Wars Celebration, Edwards revealed that it will focus on non-Jedi characters and aim for a downgraded, gritty war flick feel with a ‘natural and subjective’ angle.

Before Whitaker absconds to a galaxy far, far away he’s also due to appear in another franchise currently undergoing a facelift. According to the same report he’s in line for a role in Corin Hardy’s remake of The Crow. There’s no news on who that might be, or even if the film is still going ahead, as yesterday leading man Jack Huston dropped out of the project.

Star Wars Anthology: Rogue One is set for release on December 16, 2016.

For more great film and TV news, head to our movie channel or subscribe to Total Film.

Gem Seddon

Gem Seddon is GamesRadar+'s west coast Entertainment News Reporter, working to keep all of you updated on all of the latest and greatest movies and shows on streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime. Outside of entertainment journalism, Gem can frequently be found writing about the alternative health and wellness industry, and obsessing over all things Aliens and Terminator on Twitter.