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Star Wars Prequels Media Movies

Leo DiCaprio in next Star Wars? 301

Posted by CowboyNeal from the jar-jar-is-sounding-better dept.
Cortices writes "Here is a story recently posted on aint-it-cool-news telling of a rumor that Leo DiCaprio would be playing Anakin Skywalker in the next Star Wars movie. Opinions seem to be mixed on the subject but I for one am not all that crazy about the idea. "
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Leo DiCaprio in next Star Wars? More

Leo DiCaprio in next Star Wars?

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  • If they will allow Leo De'Qeer to be in the movie, i bet you they will loose 30% of the visitors.
  • Well I don't even know what you are reading because that is not what I was saying....

    I was stating that I think that a lot of the responses to TPM have been stupid. I am not saying any of you are stupid, I am merely saying that in my opinion the reasoning behind a lot of the posts are.

    You seem to want to believe that I was calling you all morons but I was not so I think you are the one who should try actually reading the words in my post
  • When I was a kid I thought the Ewoks were cool, I had all the toys. Now I see my fault... but I've certainly gotten used to them. They've become a part of the story too. At least they don't try to 'spake' :p
  • At least it would be clear that Anikin is moving to the Dark Side if DiCrapio plays him ;-)

    -nate
  • Well, how about we add another movie where he did a wonderful job? What's Eating Gilbert Grape, IMHO, was one of his best acting jobs yet. I think it was a very demaning role, because it was hard to really get into such a bizarre character. [side note: I liken that to Tim Curry's wonderful portayal of FrankNFurter in the movie version of Rocky Horror Picture Show--both of them were weird, irregular characters, so almost everything about them had to be created by the actor.]

    So, two good movies for him? Two bad ones? Two good ones early in his career, two bad ones later on? How much you wanna bet he made more money on each of the bad ones than he did on the two good ones combined?

    I must admit that I don't know the guy's work that well--how many other movies does he have under his belt?
  • I wish that the rumors are just that...rumors. I never liked Leo as an actor. To me, the only reason that he does as well as he does is that he makes the young girls wet. I won't say that his acting is bad, but it never did anything for me. Half the time if you were to ask me to name some young male actors, and I don't remember him. I think that George Lucas could find a better choice than him for the older Anakin. I'll still go and see ep2 in the theater, and if done right, I'll probally enjoy it. Hell, he might finally turn out all right in this one. Mark Hamil, the whiny scrawny blond, didn't do to bad in his later years as an actor. Maybe Leo might mature as his boyinh looks start to fail him
  • I think Leo would make a pretty good Anakin. Who else good father a pretty boy like Mark hamill's Luke?
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • Amen to that. I think that you 'average slashdotters' are really being immature about the movie. You seem to have been drooling for it for months, (even years), and then when it comes out, you can't find anything better to do than to complain about it. Jar jar this, and annakin that, and not enough maul, or character dev., midiclorians, blah blah blah. Grow up, you whiners. Star Wars after all is just a movie. It's not a religion - and it's not perfect, but no movie is. Just suspend your disbelief, and your cynicism, and enjoy it for what it is.

    I have yet to see a more ingenious story line than Star Wars, and TPM fits into the other three movies pretty well.

    In my opinion, TPM is awesome. I think that George Lucas has shown the world that you can make a great movie without having to overload it with profanity, nudity, or violence. The movie was great, and if you don't think so, maybe you should see it again.
  • I hope not. I haven't seen that many movies of Leo's, but I haven't been particularly impressed.

    He just doesn't strike me as the young adult version of Anakin Skywalker, unless Anakin is supposed to come off as whining, everyone wished he would get killed type.
    -- Winston Yen

  • Slap her some silicone, and she could pass for older.

    If she plays opposite decapio, there has to be some adult action going on!
  • Nay! I say Kevin Smith! hehehe...
  • Posted by funk311:

    Isn't Leo the ultimate source of evil in the universe anyway?
  • Posted by majestic1:

    Casting abilities?????? HAHHA.. what about young anakin in the phantom menace.. you call THAT good casting? the rumor i heard was that they called him manakin skywalker on the set.. he was a robot, a block of wood..
  • A preview for DiCaprio's next movie, I think _The Beach_, played on opening day before TPM. SW fans laughed out loud at the trailer least three times during close-ups of DiCaprio emoting.

    I did too, and I had no problems with his work in Titanic or Celebrity.
  • Posted by Bill, the Galactic Hero:



    Fine, cast DiCaprio for Episode 2.

    Just as long as you cast Bobcat Goldthwait for Episode 3.

    (Actually, he does kind of look like a young version of Vader with his helmet off in Return of the Jedi)

  • Hey come on... you all have this idea that Leo is some girlie boy who isn't even a decent actor.
    Well have you ever seen What's Eating Gilbert Grape? He played that retarded boy like he was retarded himself in real life.

    So come on... give him a chance... you're probably all just jealous.
  • Leo is a Sprout Faced boy. Say no more. Let's face it though, we're all going to go and see it even if it does have him in it - just like we're all going to go and see Episode 1 even if it gets absolutely rubbish reviews.
  • Maybe not a boat per se, but a (star)ship perhaps?

    *grin*
  • Posted by Albert Einstein:

    I have no interest in Star Wars or Leo di Caprio,
    and I'm disappointed to find this stuff on Slashdot.
  • The queenie already has a contract for the next 2 movies, doesn't she? So it will look really stupid if the queen is 17 and Anakin is 7 in one movie, and then in the next movie Anakin is 25 and the queen is 19. I know we have to suspend disbelief with sci fi, but something like that is just way too far out to happen. It's just a rumor; I doubt they'd get someone as old as Leo to play Anakin if they're going to use the same queen.

    -----BEGIN ANNOYING SIG BLOCK-----
    Evan

  • I'm not suprised at the nitpicking (hrrm... open source movie bugfixing?), but not because of the "maturity level" of Slashdot. It's more because of the nature of the medium in general.

    We've been conditioned to naturally reject the (admittedly, not always) AOL "me too" syndrome. It seems to me that a lot of people are posting problems with the movie not because they hated it, but because there's no point at all in even posting an "I liked it" comment. There's no signal, just more noise to ignore.

    Wow, I sound so clinical... Jar Jar annoys the hell out of me, but that doesn't mean that I didn't really enjoy TPM. :) Overall, I thought it was great.
  • First off, it's pretty obvious it isn't going to happen. Leo is 12-13 years older than the role, Lucas hasn't even begun to cast yet (the script would probably need to be finished before that happened, wouldn't it?), and all he actually did was see a movie at a ranch. No big deal.

    Where I *would* want to see him, though, is Episode III. The age difference wouldn't be as important, the guy can definitely play evil (Man in the Iron Mask), and he does have an imposing presence when the role asks for it (again, Iron Mask.) Besides, he'd get minimum screen time anyway (most of the time he'd presumably be behind a mask.)

    BTW, for those obsessing over future plot lines, they will almost certainly, IMO, be summed up by Anakin's feelings:

    Episode 1: Fear
    Episode 2: Anger, Hate (I think I can guess why. Guess we'll have to wait and see...)
    Episode 3: Suffering (I think this should be more than just the lava, but again, I guess we'll have to wait and see)

  • Right on. Jar Jar = C3P0 = supporting 'actor' that is anoying, but becomes a part of the thing that is Star Wars.

    And as far as 'Leo' is concerned, my girlfriend made a good point. When did George Lucas ever pick a "Famous" person for a role in Star Wars. From what I've heard, Samuel L. Jackson begged to be in the movie, so Lucas let him have that little piece of a part. And we all saw what that did to the movie. By that I don't mean it made the movie horrible, but for a second it took you out of the story and made you realize it was a movie. I think Lucas has more sense than to do that again. Or at least I hope he does.

  • What can I say? I think that Sir Alec Guiness saved Episode IV from being a simple shoot-em-up, blow-up-things-in-space movie. Ford was fun, but Guiness made it all seem more meaningful.

    Lucas' best casting came from his trawling of Hammer Horror films for Episode IV. Peter Cushing as Grand Moff Tarkin and David Prowse as Darth Vader? Who could ask for a better pair of villains!

    Gem of trivia I accidentally found on the Internet Movie Database [imdb.com] -> David Prowse played Hotblack Desiato's bodyguard in The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy! Amazing!

  • Jar Jar doesn't look so bad now, eh? (Score:5)

    by Trunks ( 35615 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:08AM (#1877845)
    Wouldn't it be funny if Lucas decided to get back at all the Jar Jar bashing (he's NOT for the older age groups, yet people can't seem to accept that) by casting Leo for Anakin. If this WAS true, I bet everyone would turn around and start yelling "WE LOVE JAR JAR." :) Lucas has also said that Episode 2 was supposed to be the "romantic" one...maybe he's thinking he could use Leo to draw all the ladies to watch...worked for Titanic after all.

    The really really bad thing would be if Lucas does cast him, he'd be in both Ep2 and Ep3. Ick! The bright side (if you can call it that) of Leo being casted is that we see him fall into a molten pit in Ep3. :) He's not big enough to be Vader I think anyway, way too scrawny.
  • Darth Vader is pure evil...who better to play pure evil than that evil bastar^H^H^H^H^H actor. This casting is pure genius...someone who we can really, really hate.

  • Wait a minute! (Score:3)

    by BaronCarlos ( 34713 ) <slashdotNO@SPAMgeekbrigade.com> on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:05AM (#1877849)
    *BaronCarlos thought that George Lucas didn't want type cast actors playing the roles of his Saga/Drama.*
    Leo, is just that, a type cast punk. Me thinks that this is a viscious rumor in the wake of the premier of the Phantom Menace.

    And, someone correct me if I'm wrong, The Second feature is already in development. Correct?
    *Carlos: Exit Stage Right*

    "Geeks, Where would you be without them?"

  • He would be a great choice..
  • s'bout it. When you're 75% machine, you can be as tall as you wanna be.

    jaz

  • If your only exposure to DiCaprio was Titanic, than sure, you're going to be hell bent on killing him before he ruins Episode 2. If, however, you have seen his other work, you, like me, will be sceptical but not horrified. If you've seen "Basketball Diaries," "This Boys Life," or "What's Eating Gilbert Grape," DiCaprio distinguishes himself as a great actor for someone his age. Lucas has always said, "I don't cast stars, I make them" so I have a feeling if DiCaprio is going to be in the movie, it will be a sort-of cameo like Samuel Jackson in Ep1. You never know though, he does look like he could be the father of Luke.
  • I must agree. I'd like to kill that little punk. he exemplifies "pretty boy"ness... i wish someone would assassinate him.
  • I second that. :)
  • You folks are so worried about a pretty boy potentially playing the future Darth Vader, when the likes of Mark Hamill whined his way through episodes 4 - 6? Hamill's voice cracked, he was 2-dimensional and the character came off as a spoiled little kid trying too hard to please in one scene, caring only for himself in another.

    Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of the series. (I have the added bonus of being old enough to have seen the original release of Episode 4 in the theatre without my mommy and daddy.) But know enough to expect only certain things from any Star Wars flick -- shallowness of character, reluctant heroes, special effects, and a few pretty faces. This ain't a gourmet meal, folks, it's movie McDonald's!

    Leo's not my favorite for the future part, but considering the acts he has to follow...it certainly isn't worth punishing yourself and staying home for the remaining prequels.

    As George Lucas himself said; "It really is only a movie."

  • if i recall correctly (and it's been a while so i might not), Mark Hamill's contract was for 4 movies. 3 as Luke and 1 as an unspecified other character.

    I dont think we'll be seeing him in the next one, but maybe he'll be Anakin in #3.

    of course, it's also possible he'll be sitting next to Willow at the pod races when Anakin shows up to free the slaves.

    personally, i think i'll wait until the next movie comes out before i start worrying about it.

  • what are you talking about... singers don't need to understand what they are saying!!!! its just sounds they are emitting, while it is easier to sing something you can understand it is not a necessity...
  • First Jar Jar, then DiCrapio...
    What's next, Roseanne as Jabba the Hut?

    All bids accepted :)

  • this is my response (Score:3)

    by Plutor ( 2994 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:10AM (#1877863) Homepage
    i wouldnt write this off so quick. i imagine 90% of the posts to this thread will be "leo decrapio" and some reference to the old lady in titanic. but i think we've all seen lucas' casting abilites enough to be able to tell he wont make this decision if it will be a poor one. we have also seen his directing abilities enough to be able to say that if anyone can turn leo into a good actor, he can. im not saying he's the best actor for the job.. im just saying.. who can play a teenage anikin well? i cant think of one good teenage white male actor. (and i think george did a great job with jake lloyd. or he got lucky..)

    Log

  • Hell yes! I'm an (mini-)award-winning ameter Australian actor living in Adeliade, if you're listening! (Be listening!) I want the part! I want the part! Come to my my friend!
  • when I see a Star Wars movie is the lack of famous actors. I don't want to say, "hey! there's Captain Picard as Qui Gon!" or "there's the Terminator as head of security!"

    I want to see charachters, not actors. Even if Leo has talent up the arse, he should NOT be in Star Wars for that reason alone.

    The only way it would work is if he were in costume and his voice was modified so you'd have to watch the credits to find out who he was.

    I would have blown this rumor off, except Lucas did cast Samuel L. Jackson in the TFM. Not that Jackson was bad at playing a Jedi Master, but "may the force be with you" lost something when falling from the lips of the hitman of Pulp Fiction.
  • Anybody would be better than cool leo! I personally liked the rumor that they were thinking of Rick Shrouder (From NYPD Blue). He looks a lot like anakin and is big enough to turn into vader. If leo is in EP2 I will make an effort not to see it.
  • My wife is Japanese too, and she just loves Leo.

    Of course the Japanese think some lame guy who snaps his fingers is entertainment, and that Hosokawa Fumie has large breasts.
  • I had thought that Lucas was seriously considering Brendan Frasier for the roll. Now that would be cool.....
  • Yeesh -- good point; I forgot about The Man in the Iron Mask. Actually, I probably have a mental block about it.... a classic book that I knew would be a flop of a movie.

    My personal prediction is that Lucas won't choose him for the role, for exactly the reason you mentioned ("...excess baggage from previous roles..."). I have to admit it took me a few minutes to believe Ewan McGregor's jedi role since Trainspotting -- :)

    In the end I guess we'll put our faith in Mr Lucas; he has a penchant for balancing these kind of things.
  • I fully agree that Leo has talent and can be a decent actor.
    The problem I see is with image. You think the "sell-out" cries about TPM have been strong? Just imagine the cries about Leo.

    I also really dread seeing a Star Wars movie being a chick-flick.
    But aside from that, this might actually make people have really low expectations to begin with for a change...
  • I can't even begin to see him as being Vader. Not even close. Besides, if Natalie Portman got to play Amidala again I would be really angry to see the romantic scenes...Leo doesn't deserve her!

    The scene between Amidala and young Annakin on the ship heading to Coruscant was clunky and painful enough....please no more Lucas!
  • Posted by lekkim:

    Well, he may be the new hyped up wonderboy...but i find that he actually acts quite good...
    Basketball Dairies(?) and even Romeo and Juliet were some ok movies...But he doesn't fir into the SW universe....we have no need for pretty boys...Wipe them out...All of them
  • Young Lady: Are you a dangerous Sith Lord, or just a handsome Jedi who likes to poke around?

    Will Smith/Anakin: I believe I'm that second one ma'am.

    Cute idea, but he's a bit to rouwdy for a Jedi/Sith. Someone like Han Solo yeah, but not Anakin. God forbid. With him and Queen Amadala...Yoda would say on his death bed. There are thirty more Skywalkers
  • WTF!?!
    Yeh, nick cage is a great actor, but can you imagine him as a 19 year old kid? we might as well cast Patrick Stewart, he's a good actor...

    I personally think Leo would make a good Anikin, He really is a good actor, I think. While its true that He is pretty famous, I think you'd get over that quickly. Liam Neson and Ewin McGregor were both pretty famous to.
    Besides, he couldn't be any worse then Mark Hamil

    ---------------
    Chad Okere
  • excuse the jar jar comment. So, if Jar jar is out of the second one, what, we get to replace him with a bigger, more annoying human? yikes. I hope Lucas would now better that he'd lose all Star Wars fans in favor of winning over the teenage girl camp *a-hem..anyone remember Wing Commander?*

  • Well, I'm always glad to hear criticism from someone able to adjust to the stark fact of a world with a Star Wars film that is absolutely moronic. As the bicephalous pod race commentator/cartoon says, in an effort to reassure you that its all a joke on you, "In any universe, that's got to hurt." I at once respect you for such an existential constition and at the same time (if you actually assert that TPM was even a passable SW film) think you insane.
    Pehaps Lucas found that exihibition of spitting in Titanic a promising complement to his Star Wars with a fart joke!
  • Casting Leo in SW would be a *horrible* choice. In the theater where I saw TPM, there was a trailer for an upcoming Leo movie. The booing was so loud I couldn't even hear the trailer! I think it is obvious that Star Wars fans and Leo fans don't overlap very much...

  • Urkel as Lando.
    Robin Williams as Yoda.
    Captain Sisko as Mace Windu.
    Selma Hyack as Amidala.

    Have Opie direct it.
    Soundtrack by Jewel & Celine Dion.

    You get the idea.

    Barfffffffff.
  • Someone on the website this article is from mentioned Edward Norton. I totally agree. He would be perfect for it, just dye his hair blond. Norton is an incredible actor (see: American History X) and can play both good and evil, and is not as scrawny or girly as Leo. I'm not sure how old he is, but do we really know how old anakin is supposed to be in the next one? Anyways, I cast my vote for Norton.

  • The latest rumor I caught wind of out here in L.A. was that they were looking at casting Ryan Phillipe for the part.

    For the record, I could live with that. Leo's never done anything for me (major turn-off: the part of The Three Musketeers when they were in bed I couldn't tell which was Leo and which was the girl), but Ryan's a babe.
  • I can think of 6 movies that I know Leo has been in. Tally 'em up:

    What's Eating Gilbert Grape? ........ Brilliant
    The Basketball Diaries .............. Good
    Romeo and Juliet .................... Good
    Titanic ............................. Bad
    The Man in the Iron Mask ............ Terrible
    The Beach ........................... Jury's Out
    Well... so far, as far as I'm concerned, he hasn't done all that badly... Although granted, the direction appears to be headed inexorably downward. But I'll wait until I hear about The Beach, at least, before I make any further judgement.
    --
    - Sean

  • Re:Amazing! -- It's a lie (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    That's just BS. A rumor. Easy to tell. Why?
    A) George Lucas isn't *stupid*. He got where he was by making bright moves and not following the herd. Besides, people hire people like Leo DiCap to try to generate publicity for their movie (STARRING xxxxx!!). Somehow, I think that Star Wars isn't really in need of generated publicity.
    B) I don't believe that Lucas is really in favor of hiring ultra-famous actors. Yeah, the kid who plays Anakin, but there aren't *that* many good actors that age, so there wasn't much choice. I sorta like movies more when I don't recognize the actor (oh, look, it's Arnie Shwartzenface with some face paint and a wig on!), and I think Lucas recognizes that.
  • The Last I heard was that Elijah Wood had been confirmed as Frodo in Peter Jackson's upcoming adaption of Tolkien's The Lord Of The Rings.
    If THAT's true, it'lll blow away Star Wars (sorry to Lucas, but LOTR was my favorite long before I had heard of Star Wars :)
  • Last rumor I heard is that he would do anything to be in the next SW movie, but he hasn't been signed on as Anakin.....yet. Lucas wants a noname.
  • ... as far as I know:

    Originally a rather famous Celtic Poem by the name of Cad Goddeu, or The Battle Of The Trees which was then translated into english, and from there they had it translated into Sanskrit for use as vocals in the song. An english translation(done by Robert Graves) can be found HERE [ipk-gatersleben.de].

    If I'm incorrect, sorry, but this is just what I've heard. :)
  • Isn't Anakin/Vader about 6'5"? Isn't Leo about 5'6"? How does one explain the difference? I guess in Episode 3 Anakin/Vader will be strapped to a medieval rack and stretched.
  • don't make me shoot myself, george. have some pity on those of use who watch your movies and pay your salary... *whimper*
    i hate starting my day with rumors like this...
  • if you think about it. It's a good idea as far as Lucas is concerned. it's the only way to get Star Wars geeks and 13 year old girls to go see it.

  • Better site for Episode II and III news. (Score:1)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Go here to get better information on episode II
    http://www.naboonline.com
  • What do you expect when you bring 80,000 guys together to talk about Star Wars? Besides, this thread is mostly here so we can toss around a few jokes.
  • Check out Jeffery Wells' Column [go.com] on Mr Showbiz. I pretty much agree with what he has to say: DiCaprio looks like he could be Jake Lloyd grown up, he really is a good actor at showing rage and anger, (gee, do you think that could be important?) and because he looks young for his age, he would be at about the right age to be Anakin.
  • Star Wars is an epic fantasy with a deep, interesting and passionate story. It is the story of a world we don't live in and the wonderful and horrible things that happen there.

    Annakin is an EXTREMELY intelligent person. Leo, well...I'm sure he PASSED high school...or did he drop out to make films?

    I don't want this woman-idol playing the part of the character who is to most of us both the ultimate evil and the ultimate good.

    If you have ever read a fantasy, if you find them invigorating and thrilling and if they become a part of your life forever, you would know why most of us would be devastated if Leo was cast as Annakin.

    Ever read Lord of the Rings? Imagine a movie was made and Adam Sandler was cast as Gandalf...a slight exaggeration, yet it brings out the same emotion of absolute horror. I for one will do anything to keep Episode 2 from turning into more of a kiddie show than Episode 1. Jar-Jar i disliked, yet I recognize his importance to the movie, and at the second viewing of the film he was not quite as annoying.. Leo, I'm afraid, just isn't acceptable at all.
  • Who here REALLY wants to share the opening night theaters with not only fellow geeks, but hordes of young teen females screaming and drooling over him? Gack.

    Of course, imagine the box office sales..

    Lets all do Lucas a favor and list off actors that could do the role who AREN'T Leo. I'm sure we could come across far better actors who aren't hearthrobs.

  • This helps the plot..... (Score:4)

    by south ( 35469 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:13AM (#1877923)
    What better way to transform Anakin into Vader than to make the entire viewing audience hate him? Leo will make the villification a simple process.

  • Re:Amazing! (Score:2)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Well, *now* we know why Anakin turns to the Dark Side!
  • Am I the only one who finds ewoks cute?

    If they don't fit into the film, so what! In every film there must the little cute animal(s), that gives something to complain for the audience, or they'd start to complain about the film. This because people are never happy.

    Besides, the ewoks are cute, and if I wouldn't like to live with them (this for my boyfriend;), I still can watch the movie and feel happy about them.

    If you others are so adult, try to remember how it felt to look at a cute little animal when you were 5 years old!

  • My opinion is that the movie was over-anticipated, way too much hype. However, it was a great movie, and the annoying things like Jar Jar just make it that much better. Mark Hammil annoys the hell out of me-but I will end up watching the original trilogy over and over, just like I always do. And for everyone who didn't like TPM-guess what? Not everyone liked New Hope, Empire Strikes Back, and since Return of the Jedi is the only one I am old enough to remember seeing in a theater-I know for a fact that there was plenty of bitching about that one (damn Ewoks!) And as far as the complaining about all the hype going on outside of the theater-I seem to remember seeing nothing but Ewoks for about two years after ROTJ-I can even remember getting up on Saturday mornings and watching the cartoon.

    I'm sure that we would have had just as much nit-picking back then as we do now-unfortunately the most powerful PC was a Commodore 64-so there were no inside scoops (and gossip), no Quicktime video clips, no online discussions-Lucas just did it, and everyone left him alone-and we are all thankful of it now.

    So if the rumor is true-it won't really matter how we feel about it right now. Lucas will do what he thinks is best, and fifteen years from now it will become an obession for OUR children....

  • More worthless opinions (Score:3)

    by jabber ( 13196 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @05:26PM (#1877978) Homepage
    Folks,

    We've all gotten very accustomed to a democratic form of government here at /. Rob has been most accommodating to the pressures generated onto him by his viewing public.

    Let's stop a minute to realize that George Lucas is NOT Rob Malda. Lucas has something in mind, and come hell or high water, he will tell us HIS story. If the studios couldn't bastardize HIS VISION, (except maybe that mitochlorian abomination and virgin-birth) then why should it be swayed by a bunch of whining geeks who have nothing better to do than contemplate the lineage of a fictitious character.

    Lucas has a particular story in mind.

    Anakin is destined to become Vader. He starts out as a sweet, innocent and exceptional kid, the seed of prophecy. What better way to turn him to the Dark Side than to make him a lover, to make him completely opposite of what he is to be. And then make his reasons for becoming the anti-thesis of his former self truly tragic. DiCaprio has played romantic characters before, and he's done a decent job judging by how all the teen girls swoon at his name. He'd be coming into familiar territory; he's being type-cast.

    And what better way to make the audience feel for the character than to feel for the actor? And to his credit, DiCaprio has the looks of young Luke.

    As for Jar Jar - to everything there is a reason. A HUGE part of Lucas' profit comes from toys. Kids buy toys. Kids like cute, goofy characters. Jar Jar is already the most marketed character of them all. There's a Jar Jar 3D adventure game for Krissakes!


    Yes, the adults notice Maul and Jinn, and buy the 10$ book and discuss the philosophy of the Jedi over Cappuccino. But it's the kids who nag mom and dad to buy them the entire collection of action figures, all the coloring books and play-doh fun factories with the Jar Jar shaped cookie-cutters.

    Like everyone else in the world, Lucas is in it for the money, and he's making it HIS way. More power to him, I say. And if you don't like it, don't go see the movie another dozen times.

  • Re:The lack of maturity of slashdotters (Score:4)

    by Pendulum ( 50917 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @11:50AM (#1877980)
    I would say we're just not used to it yet. I mean, I was born in '77, and can't imagine a world w/o Star Wars. Episode 1 is as good as the others, particularly after you've seen it the second time, and the third, and the fourth... well, it just keeps on getting better. I admit, Anakin's "Yipeeee!" still grates my nerves, but Luke's whiny "But I was going to Toshi station to pick up those power converters" is just as bad.

    But you barely even notice how annoying Luke is, or C3P0, because you're so used to it (well, I speak for myself here). They're beautiful, and I guarantee that most people who are out there right now bitching about Anakin or JarJar will embrace the film in the end, and years from now will be saying to someone "Well, everybody hated the movie because of JarJar at first, but not me, because I saw the true value of the film..."

    Leo? Well, yes and no. I am a chick and therefor qualify as an expert on this whole Leo DiCaprio thing. Also my college roomate budgeted her OSAP (Ontario Student Loan) carefully to allow for maximum veiwing of Titanic. He'll be okay, if the rumour's true. That's my opinion.
    Eventually we will grow to love him, or whoever is cast in the role. George certainly doesn't need to pick him to bring people in. He's got us. We're hooked. I'm going to put hundreds of $$ in that man's pocket, I'm sure. I already have.
    Lack of maturity? Yes. But what did you expect? We're all kids when it comes to this storyline. It's a fairy tale. And unless there is an hour-long segment of monkies rubbing their own feces all over each other, I'm going to love the next two movies. After seriously bitching about them for a week or two, of course.

  • You forgot Sir Alec Guiness (Score:3)

    by ENOENT ( 25325 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @01:14PM (#1877981) Homepage Journal
    What can I say? I think that Sir Alec Guiness saved Episode IV from being a simple shoot-em-up, blow-up-things-in-space movie. Ford was fun, but Guiness made it all seem more meaningful.

  • Yeah, but the kid did a pretty good job acting. The kid is also not immediately recognizable to most people, so you think "This is anakin skywalker." With Leonardo DiCaprio, you think "This is Leonardo DiCaprio," not "This is anakin skywalker," as you're supposed to be thinking.

    I personally liked Anakin's performance in Episode 1. I do not like anything that Leonardo DiCaprio has been in.
  • "A) George Lucas isn't *stupid*. He got where he was by making bright moves and not following the herd. Besides, people hire people like
    Leo DiCap to try to generate publicity for their movie (STARRING xxxxx!!). Somehow, I think that Star Wars isn't really in need of generated publicity."

    This is true, Lucas ISN'T stupid. He has to know who to go to to "Show him the money". Why is each movie in the trilogy in the top 10 grossing films of all time? Answer: Geeks.

    Who buys all the toys? Geeks. Who watches each movie in the film 4-5 times just to get to catch the little flaws? Geeks. Who buys every little revision in VHS and DVD? Geeks.

    So then, here's my take on why Lucas might use DiCaprio... he already has us. We are his "automatic customer base". Like someone said earlier, he could make the next film "Jar Jar's Revenge" and we'd still go see it. So he already has us. But, Lucas is a man like everybody else. He wants to see more green. What's the only film that grossed more than SW? Titanic.

    Why did Titanic make mucho dinero? DiCaprio. Every little giggly teenaged girl who reads all of the Teeny-Bopper magazines got together with their girlfriends and went to see THAT movie at least 15 times... per weekend. They all wished they were that girl in the movie... whatever her name was.

    So there you have it... by casting DiCaprio, the next SW may (in Lucas' mind) be the top grossing film of all time... but he would be forgetting one thing. He may lose his original "customer base"... geeks. Why? WE DESPISE LEONARDO DICAPRIO types, and all other iconized Hollywood manufactured actors. He is the epitome of the anti-geek.

    Yes, George, you may gain a slew of new female SW converts by casting Leo in Anakin's role... but at the risk of losing your most faithful subjects... geeks. But then again... even WE couldn't propel SW to the money machine Titanic was... so maybe he won't mind losing us. Just my thoughts.
    ----- if ($anyone_cares) {print "Just Another Perl Newbie"}

  • Re:this is my response (Score:3)

    by zagmar ( 20261 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:39AM (#1877988)
    Um...What?

    His best casting job was Harrison Ford. Next was Liam Neeson and Ewan Macgregor. Then Billy Dee Williams, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Natalie Portman...And he's directed FOUR movies. And Mark Hamill still isn't a good actor, Carrie Fisher is a writer, and Billy Dee hasn't worked since 1990 or thereabouts. Harrison Ford almost wasn't cast in Star Wars, and Liam, Ewan, and Natalie were all good/decent actors before Phantom Menace.

  • Re:Wait a minute! (Score:3)

    by Josh Turpen ( 28240 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:13AM (#1877993) Homepage
    Typecast actors?!? He didn't want typecast actors!?!? When I saw Samuel L. Jackson all I could think about was his biblical line in Pulp Fiction. "The boy is dangerous. You won't train him, Qui-Gon. If you try to train him without the counsel's permission, then you will know my name is the lord when I lay my vengance upon thee."

  • Hold the Bash-fest.... (Score:3)

    by MidKnight ( 19766 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:15AM (#1878008)
    Anyone seen "The Basketball Diaries"? Good flick, and DiCaprio did an excellent job in that, even as a kid.

    Sure, he was a schmuck in Titanic. But Jim Cameron never lets his actors steal the show-- the acting from Cameron's movies usually comes out looking second-rate no matter who's in them.

    And I guarantee George Lucas is planning for a somewhat whiny character for Anakin Skywalker in the second one (Remember Luke in "A New Hope"? Same deal).

    So I think DiCaprio might be a pretty good fit. Jeez, a guy does one cheezy movie so he can get absurdly rich and get hot chicks, and everyone writes him off? C'mon.

    Mid

  • Re:A decent choice... (Score:3)

    by Rock ( 16836 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:46AM (#1878018) Homepage Journal
    I agree -- in fact, Leo would probably be an excellent choice.&nbsp; If you've seen _What's_Eating_Gilbert_Grape_ or _This_Boys_Life_, you know that he has talent.&nbsp; He could do a brilliant job as a hero falling to the Dark Side.

    And as far as attracting teen-age girls, I'm sure he will.&nbsp; Financially, I don't think Lucas could make a better choice.&nbsp; There will be a love story with Anakin and his wife.&nbsp; Why not cast someone you know up front has the sex appeal to make a billion dollar movie??&nbsp; I wouldn't even be surprised if Kate Winslet was brought in also as the future Mrs. Skywalker.&nbsp; If recastings work for Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, it should work for Leo and Kate as well.&nbsp; Once again, "True love, pre-destined to end in tragedy..."

    --
    -- Rock
    -- http://home.att.net/~rocq

  • Makes Sense (Score:5)

    by Loki77 ( 24029 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:18AM (#1878028) Homepage
    Um.. look at the kid that they cast as Anakin in the PM. Look at Luke. You're saying that Leo doesn't fit with the blonde wimpy look? Jeese, you'd almost get the feeling folks here are threatened by the fact that Leo seems to be a pretty popular young entertainer. I'm not saying he's a wonderful actor, but I do think that he looks the part. And for those of you threatening not to see the movie.. right, if you're affected so greatly by this decision, then you're so into Star Wars that you'd see it even if it was an hour and a half of Lucas dancing about the screen naked with a light saber. ;)
  • After getting over my initial bout of nausea at the thought of Leonardo playing the essence of the Dark Side (it's tough enough imagining the little kid growing up to be James Earl Jones, but Leonardo .. as Jar-Jar would say, "How wude!"), I actually allowed my brain to start working.

    Lucas is in the inital stages of writing the screenplay for Episode 2. He's said so himself, when questioned about the rumors floating around about Episode 2 and casting and what-not. The chances that Leonardo was being interviewed for it are doubtful at best. Lucas has also been rumored to be working on a new Indiana Jones. Perhaps Leonardo is being interviewed for that. Guess what? That idea is just as baseless as Leonardo playing Anakin.

    Lucas was recently interviewed about the hype surrounding Star Wars and said it's pretty much ridiculous. People are now throwing themselves into a frenzy over a rumored interview. Can't we finish dissecting the first movie before we start in on the second?
  • What about Macaulay Caulkin? Hmm? :)
  • The biggest problem with Leo for the role, is that in BIG mainstream films e.g. Titanic and, Romeo and Juliet, Leo's acting ability is lost to the film's story. In films that are more intimate is where he does good work. I personally would choose Nicolas Cage. Looking at the variety of roles Cage has done in both personality and physicality e.g. Raising Arizona, Leaving Las Vegas, Con Air, I think he would perform quite well.
  • Look, I'm really sorry that you aren't popular and wish you had girls drooling over you like Leo does, but that's no excuse for making him out to be, what? worse than the worst actor around, a human abomination, I mean, come on, some of these posts are a little over the top. He's just an actor. Star Wars is just a movie series. Why do you all care so much?

  • Could be worse... (Score:3)

    by seanb ( 27295 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @11:03AM (#1878053) Homepage Journal
    1. Mark Hammil could be brought back to play Anikin in Ep.3 - family resemblence
    2. Buba Fett becomes a major character, played by Mike Meyers (we get to see him out of the armor for the first time)
    3. We discover that Storm Troopers are really Gunguns under that armor.
  • I agree that Luke was a whiney brat, but for some reason or other, I didn't wish that he got killed. Sometimes I would wish that he'd shut up, but not die. :)

    Anyway, is Anakin supposed to be like Luke exactly? I haven't kept up with all the books, rumors, etc. that might have shed a little more light on young Anakin, but I always thought of him as being more on the cocky, overconfident side. Something like the character of Maverick from TopGun, except instead of bouncing back from a bad situation, he slips over to the Dark Side. (I guess I'm getting this impression from Obi-Wan's comment saying Luke's father was a great fighter pilot in Star Wars.)

    -- Winston Yen
  • I actually like Leo, and think he could do a good turn at making Annakin go from innocent to evil.
    Don't judge him from Titanic, though I think he did decent acting - he was given crap dialogue. Judge him instead from his better roles, like in Basketball Diaries or What's Eating Gilbert Grape?.



    Now personally I wish Lucas wouldn't use any name actors at all, but that's not going to happen.
  • Very crowded thread, may just be lost in the noise. Oh well.

    I don't see why people can't stand Jar Jar; sure, he's annoying and irritating, but I'm pretty sure he was designed that way. IMHO, Jar Jar is representative and symbolic of the klutzy, clumsy, graceless, tactless, and inept teenager we all were, at some time or another. Or we were the misfit in grade school no one would hang out with, who got banished to the far side of the playground stuck with a book and waiting for recess to end. Or the person always picked last for dodgeball, forced onto the unlucky team who had too few players, or was always the benchwarmer during pickup baseball games.

    I would think people could pick up on the fact. Perhaps if /. had existed 20 years ago, we'd see some very similar complaining about how wimpy and stupid Luke was, and how he ruined the movie, or how much they hated C3P0. I don't know, but I think Jar Jar was a very important part of the film, if only because of that message I picked out, and I hope to see more of him, to see him mature and grow out of his klutziness.


    -AS
  • She turns 18 in 13 days...

    see Countdown to Legality [sonic.net]

    So by the time EP II comes out, she may very well be 21, and at least 19 when they start filming next year. I mean, she was a 17 year old playing a 14 year old's part!

    With a bit of make up, the right clothes, she should have no problem looking her age. I mean, she will be her age, right?


    -AS

  • Samuel L Jackson (Score:3)

    by Falrick ( 528 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:20AM (#1878073) Homepage
    I had qualms going into TPM because I knew that Jackson was going to be in the movie. I knew who he was, and frankly, I thought that it would make it that much more difficult to believe his character because of it. Now, Liam Neason (sp is probably very off) was another character that others may have known well. I didn't realize who it was untill after the movie was over and someone told me. At which point, I thought to myself "Oh yeah! Hey, that is the same guy!" But I can just picture myself now, stepping out of the theatre for SW II, and whimpering every time I think of Anakin and associate Growing Pains, and a spoiled twip being glad that he wasn't nominated for any Oscars due to his performance in some disaster movie because he "didn't want to take all of the glory away from the other actors and actresses". How sad can we be?

  • I spent the past 3 hours reading commments on Slashdot and other sites regarding TPM, Decaprio, and everything else related to Star Wars. If there is anything I learned from this, it's that everyone has become just too selfish. Everyone wants it to be MY Star Wars movie. "TPM sucked hard because it wasn't what I expected", etc. etc. etc. What people need to realize is that one cannot please everyone - if that is what George Lucas tries to do, he will fail because that is impossible. And so he did what was right: He did what HE WANTED TO DO. Guys! Star Wars was dreamed up by him. He created it, he defined it. This is his baby, and he is doing what he wants to with it. And that is why I am cheering him on. Any artist will tell you that artists don't produce work that they think the general public will like. They produce what they want to, what they dream up, what they find interesting or intriguing. And that is what George Lucas is doing. If you read Lucus's biography or the history of the making of A New Hope, you'll see that George was in great difficulties when making it. They were underbudgeted and way behind in the technology they needed to do what George Lucas wanted to. Yet he went on to make his fantasy come to life. In the new trilogy, George Lucas is continuing to do what he should as an artist: Experiment with his latest tools and produce work that HE finds interesting. Now he has all the kool CGI technology he could only dream of back in the 80's.

    One thing that I believed that has corrupted the movie industry is that fact that it has almost all but stopped being an art form. I hear all these screams about this and that person being money hungry and doing so and so just to juice the money machine some more. But the same people who are complaing about this are also, without losing any breath, critisizing TPM because it didn't cater to what THEY thought the movie should have been. When people go to an art gallery or a play, they don't criticize the work because THEY didn't like it. The artist isn't trying to please them, he is trying to please himself, and then let others enjoy his work at the same time. If you don't like TPM, why whine? Lucas wasn't making the movie for you. Yes, I realize he has his fans and he wants to please them, but that should not define his work. X is a fan of Y because X likes what Y makes, NOT because Y makes what X wants Y to make.

    I'd also like to talk about specific points that I've seen come up over and over. (1) The plot sucked. My question is why do you think it sucked? Because it didn't have deep philosophical aspects? Because it didn't have deep character development? Excuse me, but Star Wars is a stort of space battles, princesses, and heroes "saving the galaxy" (I quote). And that is how I look at it and love it - as a fantastic story of good and evil and their constant strife. Remember A New Hope? Probably the most character development that took place was for C-Threepio. Only in TESB and ROTJ did Lucas go deeper into the story. He is doing exactly the same here. (2) Jar Jar should be crucified. Jar Jar was there for 2 reasons, one because TPM is a movie for all ages and like C-Threepio, comic relief is always welcome. I understand that his carribean accent turned some people off, but hey! so what. The other bigger reason was that Lucas wanted to experiment with fully CGI characters, and Jar Jar was his test-pilot. Lucas obviously had a lot of fun in this movie. He have different species different accents - the underwater creatures more carribean/african, the traders more european. And then there was the Queens hairdo. All fun stuff. This movie is not supposed to be very serious plotwise, it is just an introduction to all the characters who are going to be important very soon (alas, two years ain't soon enough!).

    I have written far too much for a simple "comment" already, but I need to cover one more point: (3) Dicaprio Hmmm. First of all, we have no idea what Anakin is supposed to be like in Episode 2. No I don't care how many times you have watched the movies, or read the comics/books, or analyzed everything else. Lucas is writing the story and he can doing anything. For all we know Anakin might have been an annoying but cute starfighter teen-idol with girls flocking him everywhere! Or he might have been a quiet starfighter pilot that people looked up to with awe and mystery. Whatever. If you don't what DiCaprio because you hate the annoying 14-year-olds that keep swooning over him, then your argument is baseless. If you say his physical characteristics don't match, that too is wrong because Anakin wasn't necessarily a big guy as a teen. As for acting, well, we'll have to see.

    Before I end I repeat. Give Lucas a break. Let him do what I loves doing. And let us have as much of a great time as he is by enjoying it with him, or just leave him be. I am a Star Wars fan, yes, but not a blind fanatic like a lot of people. I've grown up with Lucas's movies and I respect him for producing kewl stuff, but I am in no position to criticize his work if I don't like it. He does, and that is what matters.


    ------------------

  • Keep this in context (Score:3)

    by Rombuu ( 22914 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:22AM (#1878087)
    ...I mean this far before Episode I came out we were inundated with Kenneth Branagh as Obi-Wan and Charleton Heston rumors, and we can see how accurate those were.

  • The lack of maturity of slashdotters (Score:4)

    by Jish ( 80046 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:59AM (#1878088)
    I like reading the stories on slashdot, but in the last couple weeks I have become totally disgusted with the users of slashdot.

    You fit all the immature whiny nerd images I can think of. You start off cool by liking something as brilliant as the Star Wars trilogy and then don't have the maturity or intelligence to handle the new films at all. 95% of the discussion on Jar Jar and Anakin et al has been whiny crap from people complaining that certain parts of these movies aren't how THEY would have planned them.

    What happened to your faith in George Lucas and the story itself? You loved what he did with the other movies and now when he is inspired to continue the saga you rip him to shreads. I think you should all take a step back and realize you aren't the only ones in the world and that your little nitpicks are stupid, selfish, and annoying to the rest of us.

    In terms of Leonardo DiCaprio. Before Titanic he was regarded as one of the premiere young actors. Films such as "What's Eating Gilbert Grape" and "The Basketball Diaries" being two of his critically acclaimed roles. Even Woody Allen casted him in his last movie because he was a good ACTOR, not to get girls to see the film.

    I think this rumor is probably not true but if he was cast he would probably be one of the better actual actors to be in a Star Wars film. You people should like this especially because of some of your whining about Jake Lloyd's Anakin in TPM. And in terms of him tainting the role? I mean come on... Titanic was one movie... unfortunately it gave him a reputation and became something horrible in terms of what it did to our countries movie industry. However, for you people to turn against the possibility of this casting just based on this one movie is shortsighted, ignorant, and again immature.

    I know some people here are not like the majority of posters but I just really wanted to get this out because a lot of the people here need to grow the hell up

    Josh
  • Someone will probably beat me to it, but Ep. 2 needs someone who 1) can pull off looking like Jake Lloyd at 15, and 2) has no trouble with Anakin's inevitable seduction by the Dark Side.

    So if DeCaprio's not the guy, he's probably on the short list of capable actors who meet both criteria.

    My doubts about this rumor, if I gave it much thought, would focus on 1) DeCaprio's inevitable price tag and Lucas' willingness to pay it, and 2) DeCaprio avoiding wrecking himself on monster binges long enough to get through filming.

    Of course, Carrie Fisher did alright in three movies whilst coked up pretty heavily (so I hear).

  • hold it! (Score:5)

    by Frater Reklaw ( 20684 ) on Wednesday May 26, 1999 @10:14AM (#1878095) Homepage
    It says that 'Nardo has been seen at the Ranch.
    It *speculates* the he was because Lucas wants him to play Skywalker. That part is wildly uncomfirmed .
  • That was my very first thought on seeing this.

    I will literally never see that movie if DiCrapio the Wonder Boy of Hollywood makes it into the movie.

    I think he is too old to play a teenaged Anakin, though. This smells like just a rumor to me. And rumors that smell this bad usually aren't true.

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