Many believed that we’d get a teaser trailer forRogue One: A Star Wars StorywhenStar Wars: The Force Awakensopened over three weekends ago. But that didn’t happen, and we aren’t any further along in knowing much more about this firstStar Wars spinoff. We did get a cast photo last year, during the big D23 expo, and we know the story. But who are the characters behind thisStar Wars: Episode IV - A New Hopeprequel?
Rogue One: A Star Wars Storywill follow a group of Rebel soldiers on a mission to steal the plans for the firstDeath Star. It takes place between the events seen inStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the SithandStar Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, but we have no idea if it will intersect with the Disney XD animated seriesStar Wars Rebels, which is also placed firmly in this time. It will be the first non-sagaStar Wars movie, and if the latest rumor is correct, the main character, played byFelicity Jones, won’t be a Solo or a Skywalker.
Of the seven live-action movies, this will be the first that doesn’t follow the Skywalker family story in some way. The casting siteCastingCallProhas reportedly revealed the name ofFelicity Jones' character. If this information is correct, she will be playing theRebel fighterand X-Wing pilot Lyra Erso. So, who is Lyra Erso?
We’re still not quite sure of her backstory or her lineage in theStar Wars universe. The details are for photo double Gabrielle Fritz. Most believe the woman isFelicity Jonesphoto double, since she is the only female cast member that has been announced. But this has in no way been confirmed by Disney or LucasFilm. It is possible that there is another female character inRogue One: A Star Wars Storythat hasn’t been announced, who could be Lyra Erso, but there is noting to indicate that is true, and the movie is nearing post-production.
One thing that factors into this not being true is the fact thatFelicity Jonesis a full four inches shorter than her supposed photo double Gabrielle Fritz. That would make things a little tricky for the film crew and any actor trying to utilize the woman’s eye-line.MakingStarWarsclaims the info is right on the money, though. And they’ve made their reputation as a respected site for being right more often then they are wrong.
Looking at the existing Star Wars universe materials that have been published to date, there is not much we can glean about Lyra Erso. Some fans are championing the fact that she has a last name, something that was never given to Rey and Finn, even afterStar Wars: The Force Awakensdebuted. Thus far, none of the other characters inRogue One: A Star Wars Storyhave been officially revealed. Though we do know the movie has an epic ensemble that also includesMads Mikkelsen,Ben Mendelsohn,Alan Tudyk,Diego Luna,Forest Whitaker,Donnie Yen,Riz Ahmed,Jonathan ArisandWen Jiang.
It isn’t known when more solid information aboutRogue One: A Star Wars Storywill be revealed. According to Fandango, it is the most anticipated movie of 2016. When we’ll see the trailer is anyone’s guess. As for now, what do you think of Lyra Erso? Another classic Star Wars name? Or will it take some getting used to?
