Tag: Ahsoka

'Shōgun' Star Hiroyuki Sanada Wants A Crack At 'Star Wars' Universe
Posted on in Film News, News, Television News

‘Shōgun’ Star Hiroyuki Sanada Wants A Crack At ‘Star Wars’ Universe

Japanese action star Hiroyuki Sanada (“Westworld,” “Sunshine”) isn’t a stranger to Hollywood genre work, briefly appearing in Marvel’s “Avengers: Endgame” as a sword-wielding Yakuza desperately trying to fight off Clint Barton’s revenge-seeking Ronin and even played a scheming corporate villain in James Mangold‘s “The Wolverine.” In his new Hulu samurai series, “Shōgun,” the veteran actor is getting a lot more stage time, and it’s led to some serious buzz around the show alongside the authentic touches across the production thanks to Sanada’s creative involvement as a producer. However, it sounds like Sanada is itching to travel to a galaxy far, far away.

‘Yeah, all of them. Especially ‘Star Wars’ I’m a big fan of them…I can’t wait. I can’t say [one favorite character] because [the] world itself is amazing,” Sanada told Variety (See video below) on the red carpet at the Hulu On Disney+ launch event Friday.

Twinsand — Hiroyuki Sanada in John Wick 4 (2023)

It’s worth mentioning that Sanada has long been trained in sword work, which was displayed in both “The Wolverine” and “John Wick 4” (has a sword fight versus “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” actor Donnie Yen) So, in theory, playing a stoic Jedi master would feel like a perfect casting choice.

Yashida Compound (Wolverine Production Design) | Hugh jackman, Scene photo, Jackman
Hiroyuki Sanada and James Mangold on the set of “The Wolverine”

We’ll keep our fingers crossed that Mangold keeps Sanada in mind for a role in his upcoming Jedi origin movie “Star Wars: Dawn of The Jedi,” which is potentially going to be ready for a December 2027 release. The project recently added Beau Willimon (“Andor,” “House of Cards”) to help Mangold co-write the film’s script, but we’re still waiting on major casting news on multiple fronts for upcoming “Star Wars” movies.

Sanada has plenty of “Star Wars” options beyond “Dawn” with follow-up seasons for “Ahsoka,” “The Mandalorian,” “Star Wars: The Acolyte,” and “Star Wars: Skeleton Crew” on the table at Lucasfilm. There are also two other feature films gearing up to begin shooting this year with Jon Favreau’s “The Mandalorian & Grogu” and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy’s “Star Wars: New Jedi Order” that sees Daisy Ridley reprise the Rey Skywalker role to train a new generation of young Jedi. Dave Filoni (“Ahsoka”) and Shawn Levy (“Deadpool & Wolverine”) are also developing their own features.

“Shōgun” is currently streaming on Hulu (internationally on Star) and is being billed as a limited series, which should allow Sanada to take more franchise roles down the road.

SOURCE: VARIETY

Posted on in News

‘Ahsoka’: Ivanna Sakhno Joins Rosario Dawson In ‘Star Wars’ Series

In December 2020, it was announced by Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy that they would be giving Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka Tano her own live-action series on Disney+ and Dave Filoni would be writing alongside producing with Jon Favreau.

After making her long-awaited live-action debut in The Mandalorian, Ahsoka Tano’s story, written by Dave Filoni, will continue in a limited series starring Rosario Dawson and executive produced by Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau.

Deadline has revealed that Ukrainian actress Ivanna Sakhno (Pacific Rim: Uprising) is the latest addition to the upcoming Star Wars show and will play a new character created by Dave Filoni.

Last week, Aussie actress Natasha Liu Bordizzo reportedly joined the cast taking the live-action role of Sabine Wren. Hayden Christensen is also back for the upcoming Ahsoka series. The assumption here is that he’ll potentially play the force ghost incarnation of Anakin Skywalker as Ahsoka Tano’s appearance in The Mandalorian took place many years after the death of Darth Vader/Skywalker.

Ahsoka and Anakin have a long-established relationship in the animation side of Star Wars canon as she was the apprentice of Skywalker in Star Wars: The Clone Wars before Tano exited the Jedi Order. In Star Wars: Rebels, they were reunited as they came to blows as Skywalker had been transformed into the Sith Lord, Darth Vader.

The beloved Star Wars character was on a mission to find Grand Adrimal Thrawn in her episode of The Mandalorian, which suggests that we’ll be getting live-action incarnations of both Thrawn and Ezra Bridger. Although, actors have yet to be announced by Lucasfilm despite rumblings of certain actors being selected.

Filming isn’t expected to begin until next year which would suggest a 2023 debut on Disney+.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in News

Natasha Liu Bordizzo To Play Sabine Wren In ‘Ahsoka’ Series

In December 2020, it was announced by Lucasfilm’s Kathleen Kennedy that they would be giving Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka Tano her own live-action series on Disney+ and Dave Filoni would be writing alongside producing with Jon Favreau.

After making her long-awaited live-action debut in The Mandalorian, Ahsoka Tano’s story, written by Dave Filoni, will continue in a limited series starring Rosario Dawson and executive produced by Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau.

Over the summer it was first revealed by THR that the Star Wars: Rebels character Sabine Wren would join the series.

Now, Dawson is leading a live-action Ahsoka spinoff for Disney+, with sources saying Lucasfilm is looking for an actress to star opposite Dawson as Mandalorian warrior Sabine Wren.

Lucasfilm has now found their actress, as Deadline reports that Aussie actress Natasha Liu Bordizzo will play the live-action version of Sabrine Wren. The young actress co-starred with Rogue One’s Donnie Yen and Shang-Chi’s Michelle Yeoh in Netflix’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny back in 2016.

Hayden Christensen is also reportedly back for the upcoming Ahsoka series. The assumption here is that he’ll potentially play the force ghost incarnation of Anakin Skywalker as Ahsoka Tano’s appearance in The Mandalorian took place many years after the death of Darth Vader/Skywalker.

Ahsoka and Anakin have a long-established relationship in the animation side of Star Wars canon as she was the apprentice of Skywalker in Star Wars: The Clone Wars before Tano exited the Jedi Order. In Star Wars: Rebels, they were reunited as they came to blows as Skywalker had been transformed into the Sith Lord, Darth Vader.

The beloved Star Wars character was on a mission to find Grand Adrimal Thrawn in her episode of The Mandalorian, which suggests that we’ll be getting live-action incarnations of both Thrawn and Ezra Bridger. Although, actors have yet to be announced by Lucasfilm despite rumblings of certain actors being selected.

Filming isn’t expected to begin until next year which would suggest a 2023 debut on Disney+.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in News, Television News

‘Ahsoka’ May Feature Anakin Skywalker Force Ghost As Hayden Christensen Joins ‘Star Wars’ Series

It was huge news when Canadian actor Hayden Christensen was announced as reprising the Darth Vader role for the new Obi-Wan Kenobi series, that he’d star alongside fellow prequel actor Ewan McGregor. Well, it looks like Lucasfilm is keen on Christensen returning once more.

The Hollywood Reporter says that Hayden Christensen will be back for the upcoming Ahsoka series that will center around Rosario Dawson’s former Jedi. The assumption here is that he’ll potentially play the force ghost incarnation of Anakin Skywalker as Ahsoka Tano’s appearance in The Mandalorian took place many years after the death of Darth Vader/Skywalker.

Ahsoka and Anakin have a long-established relationship in the animation side of Star Wars canon as she was the apprentice of Skywalker in Star Wars: The Clone Wars before Tano exited the Jedi Order. In Star Wars: Rebels, they were reunited as they came to blows as Skywalker had been transformed into the Sith Lord, Darth Vader.

The beloved Star Wars character was on a mission to find Grand Adrimal Thrawn in her episode of The Mandalorian, which suggests that we’ll be getting live-action incarnations of both Thrawn and Ezra Bridger. Although, actors have yet to be announced by Lucasfilm despite rumblings of certain actors being selected.

It’ll be curious if Anakin Skywalker will help Ahsoka find Thrawn or simply be a force ghost mentor giving her advice. We could also see flashbacks to the Clone War era, which is also assumed for the Obi-Wan Kenobi series.

Disney+ is going to an overwhelming amount of Star Wars shows on the streaming platform over the next couple of years. They have wrapped on shows such as The Book of Boba Fett (to debut in late December), Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Andor. Season 3 of The Mandalorian has started shooting in California and there is an expectation that Ahsoka won’t begin filming until Dawson completes her shoot on Disney’s Haunted Mansion remake.

We’re still waiting on official confirmation when The Acolyte, Rangers of The New Republic, and Lando will begin production as more shows are expected to be announced next month at the Disney+ Day event.

SOURCE: THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

Posted on in Film News, News

‘Star Wars’ Actress Rosario Dawson Is The Latest Addition To Disney’s ‘Haunted Mansion’

Disney’s new Haunted Mansion movie is filling up roles with actors such as LaKeith Stanfield (Uncut Gems, Judas & The Black Messiah, Knives Out), Tiffany Haddish (The Card Counter), and Owen Wilson (The French Dispatch, Loki) joining the haunted-house pic.

Another name has been added to the call-sheet, according to Deadline.

Actress Rosario Dawson after recently wrapping on Clerks 3 has reportedly nabbed herself a role in the family-friendly horror film from director Justin Simien (Dear White People). Her credits include Sin City, The Mandalorian, Clerks II, Daredevil, Luke Cage, The Rundown, and the HBO Max comic book series DMZ.

Haunted Mansion is a film based on Disney’s beloved spooky theme park attraction similar to previous films Pirates of The Caribbean: The Curse of The Black Pearl, Jungle Cruise, and the unfortunate flop Tomorrowland.

She’s not new to the world of horror appearing in Zombieland: Double Tap and Quentin Tarantino’s unique slasher flick Death Proof.

It’s starting to sound like Dawson won’t be shooting her spinoff Star Wars show Ahsoka anytime soon given that Haunted Mansion begins filming next month in Atlanta, the cast is said to be an ensemble which could mean she’d have to be on set for a majority of the shoot alongside her co-stars. A potential start sometime in 2022 for Ahsoka is looking more realistic.

Speaking of Star Wars, Lucasfilm announced in late 2020 that Justin Simien would be behind a new Disney+ series focusing on Lando Calrissian, but we don’t have a clear picture when that Star Wars project is going begin shooting given that Simien will be busy with Haunted Mansion for the next year or so, and Donald Glover has his own projects coming out the wazoo.

THE HAUNTED MANSION – Workaholic real estate agent Jim Evers (Eddie Murphy) is accused by his wife, Sara (Marsha Thomason), of neglecting his son (Marc John Jefferies) and daughter (Aree Davis), so he takes the family on a vacation. Along the way, the family stops off at a sinister mansion that Jim has been asked to sell, only to discover it’s haunted by Master Gracey (Nathaniel Parker) ; his stern butler, Ramsley (Terence Stamp) ; and two other servants who need some help breaking a curse.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

Posted on in Television News

Jon Favreau Confirmed To Showrun ‘Rangers of The New Republic’

The Ronin can now confirm that executive producer Jon Favreau is going to be the showrunner on the Star Wars series Rangers of The New Republic. While both Jon and Dave Filoni were originally announced in December as creators and executive producers on The Mandalorian spinoff, a showrunner wasn’t named. I’ve learned that the bulk of the work is going to land on Favreau’s shoulders which isn’t terribly surprising as he was previously the showrunner on last two seasons of The Mandalorian.

Rangers of The New Republic as revealed by Kathy Kennedy takes place in the same timeline of The Mandalorian and will likely include some characters we’ve already been introduced to. It’s possible that Gina Carano’s Cara Dune was wanted for a leading role in the show before she was fired by Lucasfilm.

There was a chance Jon and Dave could have outsourced the showrunner position given how many shows were announced back in December and Season 3 of The Mandalorian seemingly still hasn’t started production. Favreau is most likely going to continue his role as showrunner with Season 3.

It’s still unclear what the pecking order is with The Book of Boba Fett as Jon, Dave, and Robert Rodriguez are all executive producing but we should start learning more information about the series in the coming months. Rogue One’s Tony Gilroy took over as the showrunner on the Andor series and Army of The Dead’s Joby Harold is the showrunner on Obi-Wan Kenobi. Dave Filoni is assumed to be the showrunner of the Ahsoka series.

The Book of Boba Fett is the next series to air on Disney+ this December. Andor and Obi-Wan Kenobi are currently filming in different countries. There are still plans to shoot Season 3 of The Mandalorian at some point but Pedro Pascal is going to be busy this summer shooting HBO’s The Last of Us in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Posted on in Television News

Jon Favreau Announces ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ Shoots Before ‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3 – Robert Rodriguez To Produce

The Mandalorian creator and producer Jon Favreau appeared on Good Morning America to make a special announcement.

At the end of the Season 2 finale of The Mandalorian, Lucasfilm announced that The Book of Boba Fett expected to star Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen with it to begin airing on Disney+ in December 2021. We saw the pair arrive at Jabba’s Palace on Tatooine to assassinate an older Bib Fortuna with Boba Fett taking over the kingpin’s throne (a nod to Conan The Barbarian) suggesting that the series may explore the criminal syndicates of the Star Wars universe’s underworld, not just bounty hunting.

Jon revealing that The Book of Boba Fett will shoot first and then they’ll move into Season 3 of The Mandalorian. Also, Disney confirming Robert Rodriguez is involved on the producing team joining Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni.

Favreau also alluded to Pedro Pascal will return for Season 3 of The Mandalorian.

Deadline first reported that filming on the project has started weeks ago.

We’ve heard for over a week that Robert was being courted to lead his own Star Wars series and will be heavily involved with the show.

Only a matter of time before Danny Trejo is announced for a Star Wars role.

Other Disney+ projects set in the Star Wars universe on the horizon include Diego Luna’s Andor (currently filming in London), Deborah Chow’s Obi-Wan Kenobi starring Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen (set to begin shooting in March), Rangers of The New Republic, Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka series, Leslye Headland’s High Republic show The Acolyte, and another show featuring the iconic character Lando.

Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins is also directing the next Star Wars film Star Wars: Rogue Squadron coming to theaters on December 22, 2023.

Here is the press release for the project from Lucasfilm.

Boba Fett is back. And his story is just beginning.

As teased in a surprise end-credit sequence following the season finale of The Mandalorian, the legendary bounty hunter’s journey will continue in The Book of Boba Fett. Jon Favreau, executive producer of The Mandalorian, confirmed today on Good Morning America that the new series is currently in production and will arrive December 2021, only on Disney+.

The Book of Boba Fett will be set within the timeline of The Mandalorian and star Temuera Morrison as the titular bounty hunter, along with Ming-Na Wen as Fennec Shand. Robert Rodriguez — who directed Chapter 14 of The Mandalorian, a thrilling installment that reintroduced Boba Fett to the Star Wars galaxy — joins Favreau and Dave Filoni as executive producer.

Boba Fett made his big-screen debut in 1980’s Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, becoming an instant fan favorite thanks to his visually arresting armor and cool demeanor. Jeremy Bulloch, the original actor inside the armor, passed away last week — but his legacy, including all he brought to Boba Fett, goes on. The Book of Boba Fett will carry that legacy forward.

Season 3 of The Mandalorian will go into production next year.

SOURCE: GOOD MORNING AMERICA