Now that Star Wars: The Force Awakens has safely arrived on digital, DVD and Blu-ray, we can turn our attention to other important Star Wars news. Star Wars: Episode VIII, is currently in production under the direction of Rian Johnson and Johnson was kind enough to share a photo via social media (see above), showcasing a character introduced in the previous episode.
The film began production at Pinewood Studios in London on February 15. We knew that Lupita Nyong'o would be returning for new adventures as Maz Kanata, but it's still good to see her back in action (apparently, since Johnson didn't confirm the image is from his forthcoming episode). The character is more than 1,000 years old and is described officially as "a diminutive being with vast experience at surviving in the underworld. … She has given many a young smuggler a start by offering credits, equipment or connections, and helped many an old friend rediscover a lost path."
Other returning cast members include Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie and Andy Serkis. New cast members include Benicio Del Toro, Laura Dern and Kelly Marie Tran. Star Wars: Episode VIII will explode into theatrical release on December 15, 2017.
Speaking of Domhnall Gleeson, he initially raised his profile by costarring in romantic comedy About Time opposite Rachel McAdams in 2013. Last year he scored with major roles in Ex Machina, Brooklyn and The Revenant, in addition to his turn as the villainous General Hux in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Now the versatile actor has joined the cast of A Futile and Stupid Gesture, per Deadline. It's a movie about the founding of the influential magazine National Lampoon. Will Forte is set to play Doug Kenney and Gleeson will portray Henry Beard, two of the magazine's cofounders. David Wain will direct for Netflix.
On a more somber note, actor Erik Bauersfeld has passed away, according to The Hollywood Reporter. His name may not be immediately familiar, but he gave voice to Admiral Ackbar, whose grave declaration in Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, "It's a trap!", became one of the movie's most memorable lines of dialogue. He returned to voice the character again in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Primarily, Bauersfeld was a radio-drama producer. He described his voice work as "accidental. I was working with Randy Thom on radio dramas at his technical quarters at Lucasfilm. One day Ben Burtt, sound designer for Star Wars, came by and asked if I would audition for a voice in the movie." He also voiced another character in the movie, Bib Fortuna, and later did voice work for Steven Spielberg's A.I. Artificial Intelligence and Guillermo del Toro's Crimson Peak. He was 93.
