Benicio Del Toro has been offered the part of the villain in Star Wars Episode VIII, according to The Wrap and Variety. The untitled movie is set for release on May 26th, 2017, and will be helmed by Looper and Brick director Rian Johnson. Variety
says that the studio is looking for big-name talent in this villain
role, with Joaquin Phoenix also having met about the part. Both
publications, however, note that a deal is far from being locked in.
Del Toro is an actor with range, having appeared in movies like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Traffic, 21 Grams, and a recent cameo in Guardians of the Galaxy. Following the casting of Girls star Adam Driver as Episode VII bad guy Kylo Ren, the Star Wars sequel trilogy could turn out to have some memorable on-screen villainy.
