John Boyega has made a bid to be cast in Spaceballs 2, a sequel to Mel Brooks’s spoof of Star Wars.
The 33-year-old actor rose to fame playing Finn, a stormtrooper who defects from the evil Empire, in Disney’s Star Wars sequel trilogy (2015-2019).
Spaceballs 2 is an upcoming sequel to Spaceballs, the 1987 comedy film directed by Brooks, and starring Rick Moranis, John Candy, and Bill Pullman.
During an appearance at Dragon Con, Boyega addressed the possibility of starring in the new spoof sequel.
“[My phone] hasn’t rung yet, so I have to come here and just say it,” he said, as quoted by Popverse. “They could pick up the phone and give me a call. Let me make Spaceballs legit.”
Little is currently known about the sequel, which is being developed for MGM, the studio now owned by Amazon.
Announced in 2024, the film will be produced by Brooks and Josh Gad, with Josh Greenbaum set to direct. Reports have claimed that Lewis Pullman (Thunderbolts*) and Keke Palmer (Nope) will join Bill Pullman and Moranis among the cast.
A teaser for the film was released earlier this year, and a press release suggests that the film will be “a Non-Prequel Non-Reboot Sequel Part Two but with Reboot Elements Franchise Expansion Film”.
Since wrapping up his work on the actual Star Wars franchise, Boyega has spoken about his dissatisfaction with certain aspects of his role.
Speaking on the documentary Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Men in Hollywood earlier this year, Boyega addressed the racism he had faced after being cast in 2015’s Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens.
“Lemme tell ya, Star Wars always had the vibe of being in the most whitest, elite space. It's a franchise that's so white that a Black person existing in [it] was something,” he said.
“You can always tell it's something when some Star Wars fans try to say, 'Well, we had Lando Calrissian and had Samuel L Jackson!,’” he added. “It's like telling me how many cookie chips are in the cookie dough. It's like, they just scattered that in there, bro!
“They're okay with us playing the best friend, but once we touch their heroes, once we lead, once we trailblaze, it's like, ‘Oh my God, it's just a bit too much! They're pandering.’”
Boyega has, however, spoken positively of aspects of his Star Wars experience, describing it in that same interview as a “fundamental moment” for his career.
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