It's any wonder Rogue One: A Star Wars Story garnered as much commercial and critical success as it did. The 2016 blockbuster has revealed some trade secrets in the past few weeks, including the alternate death of Krennic. And let's not forget the role of Darth Vader in the closing moments courtesy of original screenwriter Gary Whitta.
Now we understand that 34-year old Riz Ahmed was intended to play the role of someone other than Bodhi Rook. Alongside some big names including Ben Mendelsohn, Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Doctor Strange star Mads Mikkelsen and Alan Tudyk, the Englishman was originally scripted to play an offsider for Forest Whitaker's Saw Gerrera character.
Riz Was Going To Be Hopping Mad Like Dennis In 79
As opposed to being the well adjusted fighter he was in the title, he outlined that the studio had a very different concept for him in mind. Playing something akin to Dennis Hopper's mad photojournalist in the war epic Apocalypse Now from 1979, Bokan was an individual who had lost any sense of reality.
"His name was Bokan, and he was actually Saw Gerrera's engineer, living on a planet with a strong electromagnetic field, which meant that electronics were never working," said Ahmed. "He was actually an Imperial engineer who had been kidnapped and kind of had Stockholm Syndrome. He had been living there for so long, he kind of lost it, like Dennis Hopper in Apocalypse Now."
Disney CEO: No Change To Leia After Fisher Passing
Disney CEO Bob Iger reassured fans that Star Wars: The Last Jedi will not be tampering or altering any footage on account of Carrie Fisher's death. After the devastating news had studio executives scrambling for plans later on in the series, the head explained that the upcoming feature will stick true to what has already been created.
"When we bought Lucasfilm, we were going to make three films — Episodes VII, VIII and IX," said Iger. "We had to deal with tragedy at the end of 2016. Carrie appears throughout VIII. We are not changing VIII to deal with her passing. Her performance remains as it is in VIII. In Rogue One, we had some digital character. We are not doing that with Carrie."
He would not comment on any alterations required for Episode IX. An installment that might need a subtle change. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story arrives on Digital HD this week with the Blu-ray/DVD made available April 4.
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