Rupert Friend Playing One Of Star Wars Biggest Villains?
Is Rupert Friend a Star Wars bad guy?
This article is more than 2 years old
Hitman: Agent 47 star Rupert Friend has been rumored to be starring as the Grand Inquisitor in the upcoming Star Wars franchise live-action offshoot titled, Obi-Wan Kenobi. The suspicion is being thrown around by a Star Wars news site known as the Bespin Bulletin which claims that several sources have in fact confirmed the rumor to be true. Due to a casting announcement via Lucasfilm and Disney+ from March 2021, we do know that Friend will play some sort of role in the new series. Whether that means he is in fact the Grand Inquisitor or a different role entirely remains to be seen.
Informers surrounding the claims around Rupert Friend are also saying that two of the other Inquisitors in the new series will be portrayed by The Queen’s Gambit star, Moses Ingram, and Fast & Furious franchise star, Sung Kang. Through reports from Bespin Bulletin, followers have learned that Kang’s character dons a headpiece that looks eerily similar to that of the Fifth Brother’s. The insider website also believes that Ingram’s character will be someone viewers have not yet been introduced to.
Given his vast background in different films and television series, Rupert Friend would make an excellent Grand Inquisitor. Along with his action packed leading role in Hitman: Agent 47, Friend has also starred in other high octane parts including that of CIA agent, Peter Quinn, in the politically driven Homeland. In Hitman: Agent 47, Friend played the titular Agent who was created in a lab to be a ruthless, take no prisoners killer. Shaped by years of studies, the technicians who created Agent 47 have molded him to have extreme strength, speed, brains, and longevity. His journey in the film shows the deadly assassin chasing down a corporation that is hoping to make duplicates of him for their own personal gain.
Rupert Friend’s role in Homeland also gives him an edge to pick up the part of the Grand Inquisitor in Obi-Wan Kenobi. A surveillance guru, Friend’s character, Peter Quinn, appeared in several seasons of the fan favorite television series. Proving his salt as a top tier agent and surveillance personnel, Quinn was a huge asset to the team.
If Rupert Friend were to be playing the Grand Inquisitor, he would be stepping into some big shoes. Like his characters Agent 47 and Peter Quinn, the Grand Inquisitor will stop at nothing to gain any and all information before cutting down his enemies. The character serves as the head of Darth Vader’s Inquisitors, ruling the others with a tight fist and ruthlessly pursuing his task to strike down Jedi survivors of Order 66.
Expected to be released to Disney+ in May, Obi-Wan Kenobi has already announced that actor Ewan McGregor has signed on to star as the titular character. His appearance will act as a reprisal of his portrayal of the Jedi from the saga’s first three, prequel films. The series really gained momentum when it was announced that Anakin Sykwalker turned Darth Vader himself, Hayden Christensen would also be joining the series to reprise his prequel role. While the rumors circling Rupert Friend’s portrayal of the Grand Inquisitor remain just that, we can only hope that more information surrounding the actor’s appearance will become available in the near future.
