Is Matt Smith Actually In Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker?

5. Richard E. Grant's Cryptic Comments (February 2019)

Richard E Grant Doctor who
BBC

Richard E. Grant was cast in Episode IX in summer 2018, and unlike Smith, there has never been any doubt that he's actually in the damn thing.

Grant has a massive filmography comprising a variety of different TV shows and movies, and he's actually worked with Smith before, when the two partnered up for a handful of Doctor Who episodes in Series 7.

Because of this prior connection, Grant was asked about Smith's role in Episode IX during an interview in February 2019. At this point, the last we'd heard about Smith was Variety's report (and that Palpatine rumour), so his supposed role in the film was already common knowledge.

And yet, strangely, Grant wouldn't even acknowledge that Smith was set to appear. When the Radio Times asked him if they'll be sharing any scenes together, Grant dodged the question altogether, opting for a cryptic response instead:

"I would be fired if I told you anything about that."

So, not a denial, but not a confirmation either. However, it does sound like he's trying to hide something, and why would that something be a Smith-less Star Wars movie?

Why would he even be told to hide that? Surely, if Smith wasn't in the movie, Grant would be allowed to say so, without being cryptic?

Contributor
Contributor

Danny has been with WhatCulture for over ten years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. In 2022, he took charge of WhoCulture and has grown it into the biggest Doctor Who channel on YouTube, and one of the biggest Doctor Who communities on the web full-stop. He has been writing and video editing since his early teens, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers, off the back of a burning obsession with the Matt Smith era of the show. Like many his age, he first got into Doctor Who with the 2005 revival, but has since gone back and fallen in love with the classic years too. If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order, or to give you a random factoid about the making of Gridlock, Danny is the person to ask!