Earlier this week, the news broke that Matt Smith had been cast in a villainous role in Shawn Levy's Star Wars: Starfighter. The actor was eyed to play a young Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, prompting many fans to wonder whether Darth Sidious might return...again.
Fortunately, Lucasfilm isn't heading in that direction and, according to Jeff Sneider's latest newsletter, Smith's character will be neither a Sith nor a Dark Side Force user. Instead, he'll have a military background.
"I'm told that the Force won’t be with Smith, who is playing some kind of military general in the film, which takes place five years after the events of Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker," the scooper writes.
X star Mia Goth is also expected to play one of the movie's villains, and we wouldn't be surprised if the Force doesn't come into play at all here. The title seems to suggest that Ryan Gosling's character will be a Starfighter pilot, likely working for whatever became of the Resistance and New Republic after The First Order was finally vanquished.
Smith could be a surviving First Order or Imperial loyalist, though the latter seems unlikely given how much time has passed since Return of the Jedi, when Star Wars: Starfighter begins.
Sneider has also revealed that the movie's teen lead has been cast. Lucasfilm was looking for someone between 14 and 15, and while Adolescence star Owen Cooper and 28 Years Later's Alfie Williams were considered, the decision was ultimately made to cast an unknown.
We'll see what becomes of Star Wars: Starfighter, but it's expected to usher in a new era of storytelling set in that post-The Rise of Skywalker timeframe. What the Galaxy looks like in the wake of Palpatine's final defeat and Rey's quest to build a New Jedi Order promises to be very interesting.
"The reality is that this script is just so good. It has such a great story with great and original characters," Gosling said at Star Wars Celebration when it was officially announced. "It’s filled with so much heart and adventure, and there just really is not a more perfect filmmaker for this particular story than Shawn."
Levy added, "This is a standalone. It’s not a prequel, not sequel. It’s a new adventure. It’s set in a period of time that we haven’t seen explored yet."
Star Wars: Starfighter is set to be released in theaters on May 28, 2027.