The difference in the marketing and publicity between “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” has been quite interesting. While J.J. Abrams‘ film kept a tight veil of secrecy, ‘Rogue One’ has been flying a bit more freely. We’ve had a trailer and a splashy internet streamed presentation, there’s already a TV spot for the picture, and everyone’s been pretty casual about cameos, with Darth Vader confirmed, and Han Solo and Anakin Skywalker denied. And in that spirit of open conversation, one more appearance has been confirmed.
Stopping by “The Talk,” Jimmy Smits revealed he’ll be in ‘Rogue One.’ Well, as best as he could.
“Can you say the word cameo?” he said. “Can you say the words small part?”
Eagle-eyed, super fans caught the actor in a fleeting scene in the recent behind-the-scenes featurette for the movie, and indeed, it looks like Senator Bail Organa will be stepping back for another moment in the “Star Wars” saga. In case you’ve wiped your memory free of the prequels, Smits appeared as the character in ‘Episode II’ and ‘Episode III,’ and is the adoptive father of Princess Leia, eventually meeting his fate on Alderaan after its blown up by the Death Star. However, as Smits seems to make clear, his role this time around isn’t that substantive.
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” opens on December 16th.
8/10/16 Update: a new :15 second tease for the upcoming ‘Rogue One’ trailer