Chinese Superstar Donnie Yen May Be in a STAR WARS Film

Right up front I want to acknowledge that this rumor comes from a sketchy source. Normally it's the kind of thing I wouldn't even bother writing about, but in this case, there's enough here to make it worthwhile.

So let's get into it: Twitchfilm is relaying a story from a Hong Kong tabloid called Apple Daily that claims Chinese movie superstar Donnie Yen is joining the cast of Rian Johnson's Star Wars: Episode VIII. That's almost positively false, since the tabloid is claiming that Yen is heading to London to begin filming next month and Johnson's film won't get underway for another six months or so. But another Star Wars project will be filming in London during that time, and that's Star Wars Anthology: Rogue One, so maybe the wires got crossed somewhere along the line and that's actually the project Yen will be joining (if he's even involved at all).

Casting Yen makes a lot of sense because, as anyone who has been following the film industry over the past few years will know, the international market has become a dominant factor in how Hollywood studios make decisions. Casting a Chinese actor — especially someone as well-known as Yen — could mean even bigger box office returns overseas for a Star Wars film, something Disney and Lucasfilm are very, very aware of. And this wouldn't be the first time a Star Wars movie was courting martial arts masters: Iko Uwais (Rama from The Raid), Yayan Ruhian (Mad Dog/Prakoso in The Raid/The Raid 2), and Cecep Arif Rahman (the assassin from The Raid 2) are rumored to be a part of J.J. Abrams' cast for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

What do you think about Yen potentially joining a Star Wars film?