Season 1 of the latest Star Wars series Ahsoka is over and for my money, the best character of the show was antagonist Baylan Skoll. Sadly, the actor who portrayed Baylan, Ray Stevenson, died shortly before the series debuted. Far from being written off, his character is front and center in the biggest cliffhanger of the last episode, leaving a dilemma for Season 2. You can’t leave Skoll out of the upcoming storyline. So how do you recast such a well-acted and central character as Baylan Skoll? I don’t think anyone can replace the excellent work of Ray Stevenson, but there are some actors who might be able to step into his Jedi boots and do him justice. Here are my Top 5 picks for Disney and showrunner Dave Filoni to consider.
Clive Owen
My favorite pick is English actor Clive Owen. He’s almost
the same age, has a similar deep voice, similar stature, resembles Stevenson a
bit, and most importantly, has proven himself to be a good actor in such films
as Children of Men, Inside Man, The Bourne Identity, and Sin
City. Rumor is he was once a front runner for James Bond before Daniel
Craig won the part in 2005. He’s done some series work in the past few years.
Perhaps a role in the Star Wars
universe is in his future.
Eric Bana
Australian actor Eric Bana is almost the same age as Stevenson, nearly identical in height, and he has the deep, raspy voice the character of Baylan Skoll calls for. Bana could add Star Wars to an acting resume that already includes Black Hawk Down, Hulk, Munich, Star Trek, and my favorite of his performances, the doomed warrior Hector in Troy.
Pierce Brosnan
If Filoni wants to stick with a fellow Irishman to follow in
Stevenson’s footsteps, 90s’James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan might be a good
choice. He’s a couple inches shorter than Stevenson and over a decade older,
but he’s still in remarkable shape. He’s starred in plenty of great projects.
Besides four Bond films, he was also in Mrs.
Doubtfire, The Thomas Crown Affair,
The Tailor of Panama, and even played
a bad guy in the recent Dwayne Johnson superhero film Black Adam.
Dolph Lundgren
This might be a bit of a stretch, but if Filoni wants a match
for Stevenson’s stature and deep-set, menacing eyes, he could go with Dolph Lundgren.
At 6’5” Lundgren is even taller than Stevenson and the Swede knows his way around
playing violent men. He’s played one in plenty of films including The Expendables series, Johnny Mnemonic, Universal Soldier, and most famously, Rocky IV as the towering Russian boxer Ivan Drago.
Götz Otto
If you want a choice completely out of left field, how about
German actor Götz
Otto? He’s been in a ton of movies and series, but given that most of them were
overseas, the name might not ring a bell. What you probably WILL remember him
for is his role as the towering henchman Stamper in the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies. At 6’6”, he’s the
tallest actor on this list and if Stamper was any indication, he knows how to quietly
intimidate on screen.
Who is your pick to take over the role of Baylan Skoll? Have
an actor in mind that isn’t on this list? Share it in the comments.
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