We’ve got a little over a year before the next chapter in the Star Wars saga blasts onto the big screen and we’ve got our first piece of casting news for the film.

According to an exclusive in Variety, The Americans star Keri Russell will be traveling to a galaxy far far away in Star Wars Episode IX which will be written and directed by JJ Abrams.The role apparently calls for action heavy fight scenes and Russell is no stranger to them from both her role on The Americans to her collaboration with Abrams in Mission: Impossible III. Russell and Abrams have worked together since her breakout hit series Felicity, created by Abrams and Matt Reeves.

With Russell joining the cast of the film, speculation about her character can begin in earnest. The two biggest rumors so far are that Russell will play Rey’s (Daisy Ridley) long lost mother in the feature. The next rumor is that she could be playing a character hinted at by others from the expanded universe, Mara Jade.

Production is set to begin on the film at the end of this month, so expect more casting news in the coming weeks.Let me know what you think in the comments below.

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