A$AP Rocky almost was part of the “Star Wars” franchise. The musician/actor told Variety that he auditioned to play Lando Calrissian, presumably for 2018 prequel film “Solo: A Star Wars Story.” Donald Glover, another rapper/actor, was cast instead.
“I auditioned for ‘Star Wars’ — for Lando — and my audition was trash. I was trash that day,” A$AP Rocky said. “My man Childish Gambino [Donald Glover] was a way better Lando than I would’ve provided at that time. And I think he looked a little more like [original actor Billy Dee Williams] than me.”
When asked if he would audition again for a “Star Wars” film, though, A$AP Rocky added, “Hell, yeah.”
A$AP Rocky is poised to have a breakout acting year with two A24 films: Spike Lee’s highly-anticipated “Highest 2 Lowest” and Sundance hit “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” a film that A$AP Rocky said is “for all the moms across the world.”
A$AP Rocky noted that he considers himself to be a “Method actor,” as exemplified especially while filming “Highest 2 Lowest” alongside Denzel Washington and Jeffrey Wright. “It’s being alone in your trailer, looking in the mirror, embodying that person,” he said. “When you’re not on the set, or when you clock out, you’re still embodying that character. Around the beginning of shooting, my family was still in California, so I got to really be this guy and go home [as him]. When my family finally came to New York in late May, we were almost wrapped, and I had to be in daddy mode. I had to shift back and forth.”
And that Method approach extended to also putting his own stamp on his character, Yung Felon. “Spike was open to me creating my character. I’m a Method actor — I’ve got to embody this person,” he said. “So wearing different hats — like fatherhood and all that other stuff — there’s only so much time you’ve got, right? So I needed this guy to be realistic. His name was MC Microphone Checka — like microphone check, 1, 2, 1, 2 — and I said, ‘No, he’s Yung Felon.’ Spike is OK with allowing collective ideas. It was a blessing for him to be so receptive and open-minded to my ideas. He shut down a lot, and he fucked with a lot.”
A$AP Rocky continued, “I’m blessed to work. […] I’m down for whatever [next]. I think I need to be the new Black James Bond. Like, why not?”
