'The Mandalorian' May Have Recruited 'Rocky' Star Carl Weathers For A Role
Right now, production is underway on the first live-action Star Wars series that will be coming to the Disney+ streaming service next year. The series is called The Mandalorian, and while we have a plot synopsis and details on who will be directing all of the episodes in the show's inaugural season, somehow Disney and Lucasfilm have kept a tight lid on the cast. But we might have word on at least one actor in the series.
Carl Weathers is best known for playing Apollo Creed in the Rocky franchise, not to mention hunting down a certain alien hunter in the original Predator. Now it sounds like he might be making an appearance in a galaxy far, far away if a new rumor is to be believed. Making Star Wars has the update on The Mandalorian, but it should be noted that this bit of information comes from a recent episode of their podcast and not a report they filed on the website. However, Making Star Wars has proven reliable in the past when it comes to stories like this, so this shouldn't be brushed off.
As of now, there's no indication what role Carl Weathers might have in The Mandalorian, but it would be interesting if he ended up being some kind of seasoned mercenary as a nod to his work in Predator. Then again, maybe he'll just be some kind of villager trying to salvage the meat off a bone in order to get a nice stew going.
Carl Weathers hasn't been present in many movies recently, but he's kept quite busy on television. Aside from his recurring role in Arrested Development, he's also appeared on Colony and the connected universe of NBC shows Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D. and Chicago Justice. Most recently, he guest starred on the new version of Magnum P.I. and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, so heading to The Mandalorian would be quite the step up for the actor.
Of course, there's always a chance we won't be getting a live-action role from Carl Weathers. After all, he's done voice work in projects like Toy Story of Terror and the recent Disney XD series Star vs The Forces of Evil. So maybe he'll be voicing an alien, droid or villain character of some kind. Anything is possible when you're dealing with the Star Wars universe.
Anyway, The Mandalorian is in production now with episodes directed by Dave Filoni (Star Wars: The Clone Wars), Deborah Chow (Jessica Jones), Rick Famuyiwa (Dope), Bryce Dallas Howard (Solemates), and Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok). There's no official release date yet, but the series will be part of the Disney+ streaming service sometime next year, so stay tuned. In the meantime, here's the official synopsis to hold you over:
After the stories of Jango and Boba Fett, another warrior emerges in the Star Warsuniverse. The Mandalorian is set after the fall of the Empire and before the emergence of the First Order. We follow the travails of a lone gunfighter in the outer reaches of the galaxy far from the authority of the New Republic.