news Gael García Bernal: ‘It Would Be Cool’ Playing ‘Star Wars’ Villain to Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor

The careers of Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna will forever be linked thanks to Alfonso Cuarón’s 2001 drama “Y Tu Mamá También,” which served as an international breakthrough for all three gentlemen (although Luna had a head start with “Amores Perros” the year before). Both actors have gone on to U.S. stardom, Bernal with his Golden Globe-winning role in Amazon’s “Mozart in the Jungle” and Luna with his role as Cassian Andor in “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.” Luna is reprising this character in the upcoming Disney+ television series “Andor.” Would Bernal join him? The actor told The Independent he’d definitely consider it.

“If Cassian Andor ever needs to find his lost brother or something, then maybe they can call me,” Bernal said when asked about career interest in joining the “Star Wars” franchise. “Or his antagonist. That would be cool actually! In a galaxy far away! I mean, I am curious. If something comes along that is interesting like that…I would consider it, I guess.”

Bernal is a renowned actor, but he’s only just getting the chance to be the leading star of a Hollywood studio tentpole. That would be “Old,” the new thriller from M. Night Shyamalan. Bernal told The Independent that he was “surprised and completely haunted” by Shyamalan’s script, so it was an easy project to agree to star in.

“I was really curious to see how the hell Night wanted to shoot this, and how he wanted to prepare this, how he wanted to put this together,” Bernal said. “It’s putting on a play, in a way. How are we going to put it together? I was like, ‘Man, I really want to be part of this.’”

Shyamalan is already an established filmmaker, but much of Bernal’s career has been defined by collaborations with promising young filmmakers who have since become global auteurs. There’s “Y Tu Mamá” director Cuarón and “Amores Perros” filmmaker Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, both of whom have become two-time Oscar-winning directors, and there’s “No” helmer Pablo Larraín, who just directed Kristen Stewart in the Princess Diana drama “Spencer.”

“I raised and nurtured [them],” Bernal said. “I saw their first steps…It’s great to have friends [and to] share these unexpected experiences that challenged them…and we’re still working together, we’re still connecting, we’re still thinking about what to do next. And we’re all having different journeys. Working with them is like going back to the beehive in a way. Now the time would be for Alejandro González Iñárritu to call me to work with him again. I dare him to do that!”

“Old” opens in theaters July 23 from Universal Pictures. Luna’s “Star Wars” series “Andor” does not yet have a release date, but it won’t premiere until 2022 at the earliest.
 
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