The war between man and beast, between Jaegar and Kaiju, rages on when Pacific Rim 2 returns to theaters. But humanity just got a boost with the addition of a Force-friendly actor. John Boyega apparently will shift from Star Wars: Episode VIII to the lead role in the still-developing Pacific Rim 2.
Deadline has the story, reporting that John Boyega – who recently became a global sensation by playing Finn in J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: The Force Awakens -- has been added to the cast of Pacific Rim 2, which will begin filming later this year. The trade notes that Boyega has been tapped to play the son of Idris Elba’s character, Stacker Pentecost. That was his real name. Seriously. On the casting, original Pacific Rim director Guillermo del Toro said:
I am very proud and happy to welcome John into a fantastic sandbox. The Pacific Rim universe will be reinforced with him as a leading man as it continues to be a multicultural, multi-layered world. ‘The World saving the world’ was our goal and I couldn’t think of a better man for the job.
This is the strongest step toward Pacific Rim 2 becoming a reality. The project vacillated between various degrees of unrest, with Guillermo del Toro really wanting to direct the sequel, to the studio hedging its bets because the movie made money… but not quite enough money to guarantee a sequel. Once Del Toro shifted to other projects, Pacific Rim 2 spun its wheels until new director Steven S. DeKnight stepped in. Now, with a lead actor like John Boyega in place, we expect full steam ahead on this potential blockbuster.
Released in 2013, Pacific Rim was set in a world where creatures dubbed Kaiju emerged from our oceans, and caused global devastation. In an effort to save our planet, our militaries worked together to construct Jaegars, skyscraper-sized robots that could battle the beasts on land and in the sea. At the conclusion of the film, we had figured out how to close the "breach," or the portal between our world and that of the Kaiju. But it likely won’t stay closed for long.
Now that we have a new lead in John Boyega, I wonder who, if anyone, will be back for Pacific Rim 2. Charlie Hunnam and Rinko Kikuchi led the initial adventure, and both are in play for a sequel. Unless it picks up in a completely different area, centered around new people. We’ll continue to report what we know on Pacific Rim 2, but for now, do you like that John Boyega is making it his next project?
