Barbie star Ryan Gosling said to be in talks to join Shawn Levy’s upcoming Star Wars movie

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Oscar-nominated actor is in talks to star in Shawn Levy’s standalone Star Wars film, and the news has fans buzzing with excitement.

The film, which Levy has been developing since 2022, is set to be a standalone project and won’t connect to the Skywalker Saga that defined the franchise’s earlier years.

This isn’t the first time Star Wars has opted to branch out into uncharted territory - recent series like Andor and The Mandalorian have explored corners of the galaxy far removed from Jedi and Sith, and it seems Levy’s film will take a similar approach.

Jonathan Tropper, who previously worked with Levy on The Adam Project and This Is Where I Leave You, has been working on the script for over a year.

While plot details are being kept as tightly locked as the Death Star plans, the standalone nature of the movie suggests it’ll introduce audiences to entirely new characters and stories.

Levy was originally scheduled to direct a different project - a boy band comedy at Paramount starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman - but Gosling’s sudden interest seems to have put the Star Wars film into hyperspeed.

If the deal is finalized, filming could start as early as this fall, which would make it the first Star Wars feature to enter production since 2019’s The Rise of Skywalker.

It’s also worth noting that Levy’s project is separate from other Star Wars films in development, including Taika Waititi’s untitled movie and James Mangold’s Dawn of the Jedi.

This isn’t even the first time Gosling’s name has been linked to Star Wars. Back in 2013, rumours swirled that he and Zac Efron were being considered for roles in The Force Awakens.

While that ultimately didn’t pan out, the idea of Gosling wielding the Force - or at least flying something as cool as an X-wing - has lingered in fan circles ever since. Now, with Levy at the helm, it seems the stars have aligned to make it happen.

Neither Levy nor Lucasfilm has officially confirmed Gosling’s casting, and as with most Star Wars projects, secrecy is the name of the game.