Originally published August 23, 2015. Updated November 29, 2022.
Fresh from the rumour that Disney is looking to cast a “strong young female” lead for Star Wars: Episode VIII comes a report from The Daily Mail suggesting that Lucasfilm and ILM are set to digitally recreate Peter Cushing for a return as Grand Moff Tarkin in the 2016 spinoff Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
According to a ‘source’ for the newspaper, “This is one of the most complex and costly CGI re-creations ever. They are going through hours and hours of old footage from the horror movies to recreate his legs and feet to produce realistic movements. It is eerie to see someone who has been dead for so long come to life on a screen.”
SEE ALSO: Cast photo and new logo for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
It should be noted that the same ‘source’ goes on to state that “Cushing is a pivotal plot line as he was the one to create Darth Vader”, which seems an odd turn of phrase for an alleged insider to use… or anyone who has seen Star Wars, for that matter.
Last comment notwithstanding, given the plot of Rogue One – a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star – it would seem likely that Tarkin will make an appearance in the film, and certainly wouldn’t be a surprise if Lucasfilm is planning some digital trickery to bring a stand-in’s appearance more in line with the legendary British actor.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is set for release on December 16th 2016, with a cast that includes Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything), Diego Luna (Milk), Ben Mendelsohn (The Dark Knight Rises), Donnie Yen (Ip Man), Jiang Wen (Let the Bullets Fly), Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland), Alan Tudyk (Con Man) and Riz Ahmed (Nightcrawler).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL18yMRIfoszEaHYNDTy5C-cH9Oa2gN5ng&v=8k_v0cVxqEY
