Some of you may have heard news in the press this week about an article that originated in Variety regarding casting of Episode II. I wanted to take a moment to set the record straight.

George is still working on the script for Episode II so at the moment Robin Gurland is only casting for Anakin. Thus far, Robin has seen 700 tapes and submissions and met with 300 candidates. She does not have a short list yet and is still exploring many possibilities. I know there have been many reports of actors saying that they have met with George Lucas and have done readings for him, or are the number one choice for Anakin. These are false rumors (but fun to read!).

Regarding other characters, Robin will not begin to cast other parts until she gets a character breakdown from George. The Variety article was completely false in reporting that we have roles for "a Native American character with a forceful, spiritual nature and an Asian character, possibly trained in martial arts." In addition to the fact that we won't have character descriptions until the script is finished, the descriptions reported would never be appropriate for a Star Wars film. The diversity of actors who have appeared in Star Wars such as Pernilla August (Anakin's mother), Hugh Quarshie (Captain Panaka), Dhruv Chanchani (Kitster), and Kristina DaSilva (Rabé) were chosen for the talent they brought to their roles--not because they were Swedish, Ghanaian, Indian, or Brazilian. The Star Wars movies have always been populated with a rich cast of characters that make up this fantasy world.

In this day and age my job is constantly filled with frustration (and sometimes humor) at what is reported as news. The Variety article was picked up by a news service that was then picked up by radio stations. All I can say is, everything you read on the STAR WARS.com website is true. Other than that--be wary!

Lynne Hale
Director of Communications
Lucasfilm Ltd.