Hollywood's going to make Adam Driver happen. It's not a question of “if,” but just a question of “when.”
Variety reports today that Driver is in talks to join “Star Wars: Episode VII,” and they suggest that his character will be a major villain in the film. Driver was one of the names in the mix to play Lex Luthor for “Man Of Steel 2,” which ran contrary to earlier reporting that he was being considered as Nightwing, and it looks like he's being viewed as a candidate for bad guy roles in a number of these big movies right now. I certainly think he has the right charisma to make a character like that interesting, but I hope that's not the only way Hollywood sees him. He's more interesting than that.
It's always interesting to see how Hollywood tries to figure out an actor once they've made that first big splash. Driver's been working consistently since 2010, and it feels like he has very quickly become a familiar face thanks to appearances in films like “J. Edgar,” “Frances Ha,” “Lincoln,” and last year's “Inside Llewyn Davis.” By far, the role he is best known for at the moment is Adam Sackler in Lena Dunham's “Girls.” He's been able to build a very complex and interesting character there, slowly peeling back layers to reveal that he's not at all what he first seemed to be when the series began.
There are several other films that he's already finished, like “The F Word,” “Tracks,” and “This Is Where I Leave You,” which I hear great things about already. Adam Driver, to be quite honest doesn't need “Star Wars.” He's doing just fine right now. But I think “Star Wars,” if it's really going to be something special, needs actors like Adam Driver, guys who bring something real to the table.
For any villain in the new “Star Wars” series to be considered as iconic as Darth Vader, it's going to take both great writing and a great performance. If Driver is an indication of the sort of cast that director JJ Abrams is considering for the film, then I'd say we're off to a very promising start. I hope that if he ends up playing this role, it doesn't affect his schedule in a way that forces him to drop out of Martin Scorsese's upcoming “Silence,” because that sounds like a once-in-a-lifetime experience with one of our greatest filmmakers. I love “Star Wars,” but if I were an actor, “Silence” would be one of those projects that would be impossible to miss.
This is the first new name we've heard for “Star Wars: Episode VII” as more than just rumor, and if Lucasfilm is ready to start announcing the cast, I hope they do it soon and in one big press release instead of trickling names out.
“Star Wars: Episode VII” is in theaters on December 18, 2015.