Variety Names Five Actors As Contenders For Lead Role In Episode VII

According to Variety, the producers of Star Wars Episode VII have narrowed down the group of actors vying for the starring role to approximately five names. These names are Ed Speelers, John Boyega, Jesse Plemons, Matthew James Thomas, and Ray Fisher. "Exact details of the character are vague," writes Variety's Justin Kroll, "but the part is believed to be a Jedi apprentice." No surprise there, as the film that launches a new era of Star Wars is widely expected to introduce a new generation of Jedi Knights.

Variety's sources are telling the publication that the delay in casting this vital role "has to do [with] whether execs and creatives want someone of a different ethnicity from the previous Caucasian leads."

Production on Episode VII is expected to begin in a few short months at Pinewood Studios in London, England. Click here to read the Variety report.

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