Now that Snoke is dead and the mystery of Rey’s parentage has been definitively addressed in a way that was clever and interesting (even if it didn’t live up to the internet’s boring fan theories), there’s only one lingering question that has plagued Star Wars fans: Where the hell has Lando Calrissian been since Return Of The Jedi? Well, it looks like we’re finally going to find out in J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: Episode IX, as The Hollywood Reporter’s sources have confirmed that Billy Dee Williams will be reprising his role as the galaxy’s smoothest gambler/smuggler/gas planet mayor in the next movie.
We don’t know anything about what Lando will be doing in Episode IX, obviously, but we’d wager (on a game of Sabacc!) that he’ll be conning somebody out of something while wearing a stylish cape. Maybe we’ll even get an update on Lobot’s whereabouts, laying the groundwork for the Lobot-centric prequel story that we’ve all been dying for. Also, considering that both The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi killed off an original trilogy character, Lando might want to watch his back in this one.
This will be Williams’ big return to playing Lando in a live-action capacity, but he has actually returned to the role a bunch of times in recent years for Star Wars video games and TV shows.