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‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’ Actor Ben Mendelsohn Quiet Regarding Secretive Role [Spoilers]

By Dustin Wicksell
Published on: 07:53 PST, Jun 17, 2016

Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn recently appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live, deftly avoiding questions regarding his upcoming appearance in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and refusing to reveal any details about his role in the highly anticipated film.

Mendelsohn joined Kimmel for his show on Thursday, according to Entertainment Weekly, and it wasn’t long before the host touched on the subject of his guest’s participation in the Star Wars universe. When asked by Kimmel if he had found it difficult to maintain silence about his involvement with Rogue One, Mendelsohn answered emphatically in the affirmative, giving an example that also highlighted the way the franchise has saturated pop culture.

“The worst thing is, right, you’ll be walking down the street and you’ll see some kid in a Star Wars T-shirt, and you’re like, ‘I’m in that… whether you know that or not.'”

Kimmel continued to press Mendelsohn about his role, which most Star Wars fans agree will be as one of the primary antagonists of Rogue One. The actor refused to reveal whether his character will be a good guy or a bad guy, however, and also remained silent on whether he will be able to utilize the Force over the course of the film.

Little was known of Mendelsohn’s character in Rogue One prior to the release of the film’s first trailer earlier this year. During his appearance in that clip, however, fans noted that Mendelsohn was wearing the uniform of a Grand Admiral in the Imperial Navy. The rank insignia found on his chest identified Mendelsohn’s character as an admiral, while the white uniform he wore marks him as another step higher in the Imperial hierarchy. No Grand Admiral has ever appeared onscreen in any previous Star Wars film, though there are numerous examples of the rank showing up in the now-mothballed Expanded Universe. Notably, the primary antagonist of Timothy Zahn’s Heir to the Empire trilogy was Grand Admiral Thrawn, one of the most popular characters in all of the expanded Star Wars lore.

While character details are somewhat scarce in the lead-up to the release of Rogue One, intermittent leaks have revealed some of the names and background of the cast to fans, as the Inquisitr has previously reported. Last month, images of an Official Visual Story Guide, which was ostensibly set to be released in the weeks after the film hits theaters, leaked online.

Unconfirmed and marked with banners that noted the artwork was “Not Final,” the leaked images nevertheless announced the names of most of Rogue One‘s diverse cast. According to Making Star Wars‘ take on the photos, Mendelsohn’s character will not only be a Grand Admiral, but will also carry the title of “Director” Krennic. Should this detail prove to be true, it remains to be seen what exactly Krennic will be charged with directing (though it stands to reason that he could be in charge of some part of the Death Star’s construction process, a core part of the film).

The leaked images also depicted none other than Darth Vader towering over the main cast of Rogue One, while the Death Star hangs in the background. Though the image does not definitively confirm the Sith lord’s presence in the film, he has long been rumored to appear. Fans will get a chance to find out for certain, and to learn more about Ben Mendelsohn’s mysterious Grand Admiral/Director, when Rogue One: A Star Wars Story debuts in December.

[Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images]

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