A friend of mine (AtomK13, the reigning Know Your President champion) asked who I would cast for The High Republic and he gave me a few suggestions, which I liked. Naturally though, I need to take it to the extreme. Here are my choices for like every character. The beauty of Star Wars is that so many of the characters will be in heavy makeup, so age and looks do not matter so much. There may be spoilers for characters as well, since I am writing this after The Fallen Star.
The Constellation of Jedi
The three main Jedi of the first phase are Stellan Gios, Avar Kris, and Elzar Mann. I will not lie, I really liked AtomK13’s picks for these three, so I am stealing them. It feels like Stellan is meant to be this era’s Obi-Wan Kenobi, so you need someone with that gravitas. AtomK13 suggested Chris Pine. At first I scoffed, but then I remembered some of Pine’s recent roles and he plays refined, dignified type characters. I think it would also help the character to not be a total Kenobi clone. Avar Kris is a strong and powerful Jedi, who has recently attained the rank of Master. Brie Larson has the look and has some experience playing a powerful character. Elzar Mann is the third member of the trio and of the three was the last to attain the rank of Master. He struggles with his emotions (particularly for Avar) and has even had some brushes with the Dark Side. AtomK13 suggest Henry Goulding. Like I said, I think those are perfect picks. These three were padawans together, so it would make sense that they are of a similar age.
Young Jedi Knights & Padawans
There are a few young knights and padawans that are the focus of the High Republic. My favorite is Reath Silas. He is very close to being knighted when we meet him and eventually ends up receiving his promotion. He is a bookish padawan who would rather stay at the Temple and study. But, Master Jora Malli encourages him to train his body as well as his mind, so he ends up being one of the best lightsaber dualists. I am picturing Austin Abrams. After seeing him in Euphoria and This Is Us, he definitely has range and a very athletic body.
Bell Zettifar is around the same age as Reath, and if I remember correctly, they are friends. Bell lost his Master (technically he lost Loden twice) and Bell blames himself for not trusting his instincts and the Force. He was left with another injured master and a dead friend (who Bell believes is missing and still alive). I believe Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas) from Stranger Things has the look and acting ability to pull this off.
Vernestra Rwoh is one of the youngest Jedi Knights. I believe she is a year or so younger than Reath and Bell. Because of her age, she has a unique relationship with her padawan, Imri Cantaros. She is young and you need an actress who would almost look like a child. I think Daphne Keen would be perfect. And to help contrast her with Imri, I am thinking Charlie Plummer since he is almost six feet tall.
Here are a few others young ones…
The Masters and Knights
Aside from Yoda, there are plenty of great new Jedi Masters and Knights. My favorite so far has been Cohmac Vitus. He is a scholar, an expert folklorist. He eventually agrees to take Reath on as his padawan, but we learn that he has always struggled with his feelings and how he believes the Jedi mishandle grief. One of the cooler things is that he has ignored his lightsaber practice for so long that he and Reath are equal (actually Reath is a bit better), but Master Cohmac is pushing himself and his apprentice so they are ready for the Nihil. I think Naveen Andrews would be perfect. I thought of him immediately, then I started watching The Dropout and his performance as Sonny helped cement my decision.
Loden Greatstorm is my second favorite. Mostly because it seems like he is going to play this huge part and then he is captured and tortured by Marchion Ro. Fun fact, sometimes when Logan says his name, it comes out like Loden. So I have been calling him Loden Greatstorm, which makes him mad and he yells “I am not Loden Greatstorm, I am Loden Croyle!” Anyways, since Loden is a Twi’lek, you would need someone with a great accent. I decided that Javier Bardem would be excellent. Especially since with the makeup, you might not recognize him and that moment you connect the voice would be cool. Okay, another side story…
One of my favorite Javier Bardem roles is the drug kingpin he plays in Collateral. He tells the story of Black Peter to Max. I love the way he says “Do you believe in Santa Claus? No, nor do I. But my children. They are still small.”
Next we have Orla Jareni. She is a Wayseeker and is a close friend to Master Cohmac. She just comes off as super cool. I think in one scene someone mentions how her all white robes never seem to get dirty. She is also friends with Stellan and does him a favor by helping Elzar to refocus himself as a Jedi. I think Angelina Jolie would be good. Okay, maybe. I had someone else in mind, but Angelina’s look as Thena in Eternals made me consider her.
The other cool master we meet is Porter Engle. I think when we first learn about him, he is the cook where Loden and Bell are stationed. He is old (like 300 years old) and Bell knows that Porter was once a great Jedi. When the Nihil strike the planet they are on, Porter the legend jumps into the action, impressing Bell & Loden. He is an Ikkrukkian and who better to sit in a makeup chair for hours than Ron Perlman?
Next we have a few women. First there is Master Jora Malli. She is Reath’s master and is to be the head of Starlight Beacon, but she is killed when the Nihil attack. I think Emma Thompson would be good. Then we have Nib Assek. She is an older Jedi Knight, who is training Burryaga and even learned Shyriiwook to better teach him. I think the iconic Julie Andrews would be cool in that role. Come on, you know it would be kick-ass to see Mary Poppins ignite a lightsaber. Finally there is Indeera Stokes. She is stationed with Loden, Bell, and Porter. When the Nihil attack and Loden goes missing, she takes on Bell’s training, but then she also dies. I think Meagan Good would be a nice fit
And finally we have Dez Rydan and Kantam Sy. Dez is a Jedi Knight, he was the previous padawan to Jora Malli and he is quite the adventurer. He seems like he is a quasi-celebrity among the padawans. There is also a funny part where Reath comments on how silly it is to dual with lightsabers since no one has actually fought that way in like hundreds of years. He then finds Dez, who has been drugged by the Drengir and the two Jedi must battle each other. Reath is able to win (he reminds Dez about Jora), but just barely. I think Cagatay Ulusoy is the perfect fit. Who is he? Well just some incredibly hot Turkish actor (yeah, I searched hot Turkish actors and he was one of the first to come up). Kantam Sy is a non-binary Jedi Master, who took time away from the Jedi Order as a padawan to pursue his feelings for a boy. They eventually came back. I figured it would be appropriate to have LGBTQ representation for them, so Cheyenne Jackson is a good fit.
Non-Jedi
If you read any Facebook post’s comments about The High Republic, one of the big things people rip on is a character that is just a rock named Geode. Yeah it sounds stupid, but it works. Leox Gyasi is described as the anti-Han Solo. Leox is a cargo hauler, but unlike Han Solo who is a smuggler, Leox does things by the book. He is a hippy, who ends up being the Deus Ex Machina in all situations. Need a thermal detonator? Oh, he has one. No one has replacement parts? He just so happens to know how to make them the old fashioned way. Navigation down? He can use a sextant. He is a lover, not a fighter (but if he has to fight, he can hold his own). And then we have Geode. He is a giant rock, from a species called Vintians. The author said that she based Leox on Matthew McConaughey and there is no one else who could really play him. Geode? Well, obviously he would be CGI, but c’mon, get The Rock! Maybe they could model the cracks on Johnson’s muscles.
You ever wonder what happens to padawans who choose not to become Jedi? Like are there many who just quit? That is Ty Yorrick. She is a lightsaber for hire and she is impressive in combat. She does some monster hunting as well, even taking on the Drengir. I like Ito Aghayere for the role.
Then we have Affie Hollow. She ends up being Leox’s boss. She is young and wants to do the right thing. As Starlight Beacon was crashing, she was instrumental in helping the Jedi evacuate the station. Madison Pettis is good for this role.
The Yarrow family is interesting. Chancey Yarrow is a military scientist, who wants to build a gravity well projector (which I believe will be the precursor to the projectors used on Interdictor-class ships). She left the military when they would not continue her research and ended up finding some allies with the the Nihil. Her daughter Sylvestri thought she was dead and is trying to navigate life when she ends up in the middle of a crazy Nihil plot. I think Jada Pinkett Smith would be perfect as Chancey and Kiersey Clemons would rock as her daughter. And hey, while I am casting, what about Eiza Gonzalez as Jordanna Sparkburn.
Here are a few other random none Jedi that I liked enough to cast or at the very least had a particular actor in mind…
The Nihil
First we have the leader, The Eye–Marchion Ro. He is an alien, so there will be tons of makeup. Because of the audiobook, the actor that comes to mind is John Malkovich. However, when thinking about the villain. I think Peter Sarsgaard would be perfect. I know, he may not seem like an obvious choice, but Sarsgaard is a great actor and his bad guy in The Magnificent Seven remake was excellent. I love that he has a soft voice, but can really turn it up when he needs to.
Then we have the three Tempest Runners: Lourna Dee, Pan Eyta, and Kassav Milliko. Personally, I think Jessica Almasy, who does the voice for the audiobook, does an amazing job. But, I think for the movie you go with Sofia Boutella. For Pan Eyta, I am taking Keith David, he has the perfect voice. And finally for Kassav Milliko, I would go a different route (I keep seeing other sites saying some Viggo Mortensen) and go with someone like Peter Green. He does slimy shitbag so well.
Then we have Nan and Hague. Nan has to be someone who looks like a kid, but is not. I like Erika Bierman. And for Hague, I am going Eric Roberts. Classic bad guy. And finally we have Asgar Ro. Okay, this one is funny because AtomK13 said one of the Skarsgard brothers for Marchion Ro. Well, since it will all be makeup, why not use Alexander Skarsgard for Marchion’s father, Asgar.
Alright, these are my picks. Let me know who you would cast.
