This afternoon brought an exclusive story from The Hollywood Reporter that young actress Felicity Jones will be playing a lead role in the upcoming Star Wars standalone film, directed by Gareth Edwards.
The as of yet untitled film is set for release on December 16th, 2016 and features a story written by Gary Whitta.
From The Hollywood Reporter:
"After a series of hush-hush readings and tests, Lucasfilm and Disney have zeroed in on Oscar-nominated actress Felicity Jones for the female lead in the Star Wars stand-alone film.Jones is now in talks to star in the project, which Gareth Edwards is directing and Chris Weitz — who was just hired last week — is writing. Weitz is replacing Gary Whitta, who penned the first draft."
Though no official word from Lucasfilm has been given, it’s safe to assume that The Hollywood Reporter has their story straight. Borys Kit also follows up on reports that writer and director Chris Weitz will continue to develop the story for the next Star Wars project.
Writer and director Chris Weitz is reportedly attached to Star Wars.
Following up on this breaking news, Variety also reports on the potential casting of Felicity Jones.
From the Variety report:
"Jones was one of several actresses to have met for the role along with Rooney Mara and Tatiana Maslany.Jones’ standalone movie is one of two known “Star Wars” spinoffs in the works at Lucasfilm and Disney. “Chronicle” director Josh Trank is developing a separate “Star Wars” pic."
Fans wondering just who Felicity Jones is may recognize her from 2014’s The Theory of Everything, for which she earned an Oscar nomination for “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role”.
Check out a clip from The Theory of Everything featuring Felicity Jones and Eddie Redmayne, in the video below:
How do you feel about this particular bit of casting news, Dork Siders? What type of character do you think Felicity Jones might play?
Leave us a comment below!