Latest ‘Star Wars’ Casting Rumors: Is Khan from ‘Star Trek’ Going to a Galaxy Far, Far Away?

Let's call a spade a spade and just say, straight up, that J.J. Abrams and his overlords over at Disney have been huge dill-holes about this whole Star Wars: Episode VII thing. We don't want them to rush. We want them to make smart decisions when it comes to plot and cast so we don't end up with more Ewoks or Gungans. But they know how much we're all dying to know about the next Star Wars trilogy, and now it's starting to feel like they're stringing us along for shits and giggles.

And yet, here I go again, about to fill you in on the latest Episode VII casting rumors—namely, that Benedict Cumberbatch and Saoirse Ronan are in the running for big parts.

The Cumberbatch rumor has been floating around for a while, given that he just played Khan in Abrams's Star Trek: Into Darkness. However, it seems that it's really gaining steam now, with sites like Latino Review and Film Chronicles sounding pretty damn confident that he'll play a Sith Lord.

As for the rumors about Saoirse Ronan, whom you may have seen in Hanna or The Lovely Bones, those are newer. Word is she has officially auditioned and is being considered for a role either as the daughter of Han and Leia, or possibly a villain—like maybe the BFF of Cumberbatch's supposed Sith Lord?

Personally I think Ronan, a relative unknown with some serious acting cred, would be a great choice. But of course, until Abrams and company deign to throw us bone, it's just a rumor. Take it for what you will.