Pacific Rim 2, the sequel to Guillermo del Toro’s kaiju vs jaeger monster smash, is picking up steam, and there have been a string of casting announcements over the last couple of weeks for Steven S DeKnight’s directorial debut. Let’s take a look at who’s been cast so far….
John Boyega was the first actor to jump on board, and he’s pretty much the only actor who we have a character description for. We know that The Force Awakens and Attack The Block star will play the son of Idris Elba’s Stacker Pentecost, and we’re assuming that he’s the film’s lead. That seems like a safe assumption, right?
Yesterday it was announced that Adria Arjona had been cast (via Deadline). You probably know Arjona from her role as Taylor Kitsch’s frustrated girlfriend Emily in the second season of True Detective, but she’s got some exciting projects on the way. She’s starring in The Belko Experiment, the horror written by James Gunn and directed by Greg Mclean, Melissa McCarthy comedy Life Of The Party, and she’s playing Dorothy Gale in Emerald City, the upcoming reimaging of The Wizard Of Oz.
Jing Tian joined the cast last week, and details about her role are non-existent. Like Arjona, she’s got a whole raft of exciting projects on the way, and two of them seem to involve giant fantastical creatures. There’s Yang Zhimou’s The Great Wall (the Chinese fantasy epic starring Matt Damon, Andy Lau and Willem Dafoe in a battle for humanity’s survival), and there’s Kong: Skull Island. So, lots of Legendary Pictures films for this actress. You might also recognise her from Police Story 2013 (starring Jackie Chan) and Special ID (starring Donnie Yen).
Then there’s Levi Meaden, another recent addition, and one who actually comes with a few character details. He’s playing “Ilya, an irreverent and offbeat cadet.” Yep, that’s as detailed as it gets, really. Meaden is currently starring on Syfy show Aftermath with Anne Heche and James Tupper, and he’s also put in guest appearances on shows like The Killing, The 100, Olympus and SciFiNow favourite iZombie.
Newcomer Cailee Spaeny was reported by Variety as playing the film’s female lead, but that’s where the details end. We quote “Character details are unknown on who Spaeny would be playing.” Spaeny is an up-and-coming Australian actor and singer, whose IMDB page is fairly sparse at this point.
A more recognisable name is Scott Eastwood, who was the first name to jump on board after Boyega. Eastwood’s an incredibly busy actor, having appeared in Suicide Squad, Snowden, Walk Of Fame and Mercury Plains this year, and he’s got Fast 8, Ben Affleck’s Live By Night and Wayne Kramer’s Ecstasia on the way. He joined the cast at the end of June (via Deadline). The site says it’s a “key role” but details? Nope. Not a one.
But what about the original film’s cast? Guillermo del Toro promised that some of the actors would be returning, but there’s been no one confirmed yet. Charlie Hunnam has come out and said that he won’t be back, but what about Rinko Kikuchi’s Mako Mori? Or Charlie Day’s Newton Geiszler? Clifton Collins Jr’s Tendo Choi? Don’t tell us that Ron Perlman’s Hannibal Chau won’t be back. Don’t you dare.
Pacific Rim 2 will be released in cinemas on 23 February 2018. For more news about the latest movies, pick up the new issue of SciFiNow.
