With shooting on Star Wars Episode VIII underway, Disney have not only confirmed that Benicio del Toro will be playing the movie's villain, but that Laura Dern has joined the cast also. Nothing has yet been said of who Dern will be playing, though the smart money seems to be on Luke Skywalker's love interest and/or Rey's mother depending on how this all plays out. Hell, it's possible her role will be entirely flashback-based: we'll have to wait and see. Either way, Dern's a terrific actress, and The Force Awakens proved that this new trilogy is focused on fashioning strong female characters, so she should hopefully be among them.