‘Star Wars' Actor John Boyega Joins ‘Pacific Rim 2’ to Help Cancel the Apocalypse, Again

Culture

Idris Elba's character was instrumental in "canceling the apocalypse" in Pacific Rim — now, it's John Boyega's turn. According to Deadline, the Star Wars: The Force Awakens breakout star will lead the cast of the highly anticipated Pacific Rim 2

"I am very proud and happy to welcome John into a fantastic sandbox," Pacific Rim director Guillermo Del Toro said in a statement, according to Deadline. "The Pacific Rim universe will be reinforced with him as a leading man as it continues to be a multicultural, multi-layered world. 'The World saving the world' was our goal, and I couldn't think of a better man for the job." 

Read more: 'Star Wars' Actor John Boyega Shut Down Online Sexists Who Wanted a Day for Men

Boyega will play the son of Elba's character, who died in the first film. Aside from Boyega's casting, not much has been revealed about the sequel — though the still-living protagonists played by Rinko Kikuchi and Charlie Hunnam are expected to return as well. 

Likely, it will follow a similar storyline to the original, in which humanity faces extinction at the hands of Kaiju — monstrous creatures that have emerged from the ocean. Naturally, the best way to defeat these creatures was for humanity to pool together its resources and build giant robots called Jaegers — which are basically Japanese Gundams in Hollywood form. They punch a lot. 

As for Boyega, his star continues to shine. He will reprise his role as Finn in Episode VIII, and if Pacific Rim 2 takes off as well, he could find himself at the helm of two major sci-fi franchises. Hopefully, he'll know more about canceling the apocalypse than he does about the Force.