Lando Calrissian Will Return For STAR WARS: EPISODE IX

Well, the rumor had been circulating for some time, but tonight the Hollywood Reporter made official: Billy Dee Williams will return as Lando Calrissian for JJ Abrams' Star Wars: Episode IX. This being both a JJ Abrams production and a new Star Wars movie, that is the sum total of the information we have at this time.

This won't be Williams' first return to the character, post-Return of The Jedi: he's voiced Lando in a slew of Star Wars video games over the years (most recently EA's Battlefront II), as well as in two LEGO Star Wars shows and Star Wars: Rebels. This'll be his first on-camera appearance in the cape for some time, though, and that's pretty exciting. 

Lando Calrissian has, of course, enjoyed something of a boost in popularity as of late, thanks to Donald Glover's performance as the character in Ron Howard's Solo: A Star Wars Story. That film, which arrived two months ago (ed. note - holy shit that was only two months ago?!), didn't exactly set the world on fire, but most audiences seemed to agree that Glover's Lando was one of the film's finer elements. Also worth noting: Solo: A Star Wars Story heavily implied that Lando effs droids, which is pretty rad.

Nothing further to report at this time, but you know the drill: Star Wars: Episode IX updates will continue until morale improves. Stay tuned.