A$AP Rocky Calls His “Star Wars” Audition “Trash”
A$AP Rocky admitted his audition for Lando Calrissian in Solo: A Star Wars Story was “trash” while reflecting on his acting journey ahead of two major film releases.
The Harlem-born rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, told Variety he once tried out for the role eventually played by Donald Glover in the 2018 Star Wars prequel.
“I auditioned for Star Wars – for Lando – and my audition was trash. I was trash that day,” he said. “My man Childish Gambino (Glover) was a way better Lando than I would’ve provided at that time.”
A$AP Rocky acknowledged Glover’s closer resemblance to Billy Dee Williams, who originated the character in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, and reprised it in The Rise of Skywalker in 2019.
Despite the misfire, Rocky said he’s still open to stepping into the galaxy far, far away.
The Hip-Hop artist has appeared in indie films like Dope (2015) and Monster (2018), but this year marks a turning point in his acting career with two high-profile projects.
He stars in the upcoming film If I Had Legs I’d Kick You and in Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest, opposite Denzel Washington.
For the latter, Rocky said he immersed himself in the role of Yung Felon using a Method acting approach.
“It’s being alone in your trailer, looking in the mirror, embodying that person,” he explained. “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).”
Once his partner Rihanna and their two sons returned to New York, Rocky said he had to “shift back and forth” between his character and “daddy mode.”
The couple is currently expecting their third child.
Highest 2 Lowest is set to debut out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival later this month.