Ryan Gosling Could Be Playing an Iconic STAR WARS Legends Character in STAR WARS: STARFIGHTER
The rumors surrounding Star Wars: Starfighter just kicked into hyperspace, and if the latest reports are accurate, fans could be looking at a very familiar name making its way back into the galaxy far, far away.
The upcoming film, directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ryan Gosling, Matt Smith, and Mia Goth, is set five years after The Rise of Skywalker. So, it will finally show fans what the post-sequel trilogy era actually looks like.
Now there's a new rumor making the rounds that could have interesting implications for the future of the franchise.
According to Making Star Wars, Gosling's character is named Cade, described as a Han Solo-style rogue who rescues Finn Gray's mysterious child and brings them to the Jedi refuge on Adaria.
That description immediately caught fans' attention because there's already a well-known character named Cade in the Star Wars franchise.
Fans who are familiar with old Expanded Universe will recognize Cade Skywalker, one of the standout characters from the acclaimed Star Wars: Legacy comic series. While those stories are no longer considered canon, Lucasfilm has borrowed ideas from Legends before, making this rumor especially interesting.
If this report turns out to be true, it certainly sounds like Starfighter could be introducing its own canon version of Cade Skywalker.
There is one obvious wrinkle, though. In the current Star Wars canon, Luke Skywalker never had children, so it seems unlikely that Gosling would literally be playing a descendant of Luke.
A more believable possibility is that the movie is borrowing Cade's personality, journey, and overall character concept without making him part of the Skywalker family tree.
In Legends, Cade Skywalker began life as a Jedi before walking away from the Order after tragedy struck. He eventually became a bounty hunter, smuggler, and pirate, embracing life as a rogue while trying to leave the Force behind. Over time, however, he found himself pulled back into the fight between light and dark whether he wanted to be or not.
That sounds close to the type of reluctant hero Gosling could easily pull off. The reports also suggest that Mia Goth will portray a Force user who launches an attack on a Jedi sanctuary, seemingly confirming that lightsabers will once again play a major role in the story.
The original Cade Skywalker was also one of the most powerful Force users ever introduced in Star Wars. His abilities pushed the boundaries of what fans thought was possible, including the extraordinary power to bring people back from the dead.
He was also one of the franchise's most complicated heroes, constantly struggling with the weight of his family's legacy while using alcohol and spice in an attempt to silence the Force Ghost of Luke Skywalker. No matter how hard he tried to escape his destiny, the galaxy always seemed to pull him back into the conflict.
If Starfighter is taking inspiration from that version of Cade, it could give fans a layered protagonist who feels very different from previous live-action Jedi.
There's also no denying that Gosling physically resembles the comic book version of Cade. Fans have pointed that out for years, so if Lucasfilm was looking for someone who could bring a live-action interpretation of the character to life, he's an easy choice.
Of course, it's important to remember that none of this has been officially confirmed by Lucasfilm, and these details should all be treated as rumors for now.
Even if Gosling's character isn't literally Cade Skywalker, it's certainly possible that Star Wars: Starfighter is taking heavy inspiration from one of the most beloved characters to come out of the Legacy comics.
If that's the direction the filmmakers are heading, it could end up introducing an entirely new generation of moviegoers to one of the coolest characters Star Wars has ever created while giving longtime fans a fun connection to the old Legends continuity.
We'll just have to wait and see if these rumors prove true, but for now, this is one Star Wars mystery that's a lot of fun to speculate about.