Iko Uwais and Stars of 'The Raid 2' Join 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'

Hold up for a second. Could you imagine how awesome The Raid 2 would have been if lead butt-kicker Iko Uwais had a lightsaber? Granted he didn't really need it, and plenty of other utensils of death were used in maiming his foes, but still that would have been off the hook awesome. Well, fans of Malaysian brawlers...your wish is about to be granted. Sorta. First reported by Twitch and then verified by The Wrap is that Uwais and two co-stars of The Raid 2 have joined Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

This is news of a "holy crap" kind of level. Uwais will be joined by Mad Dog aka Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman better known as "The Assassin" will head to J.J. Abrams' galaxy far far away. What will they be doing? Chances are they won't be part of the Imperial Senate or something. They'll be doing what they do best, namely fighting with weapons, and Slashfilm is even hearing they may have choreographed a scene (!!!). There's even a chance one of their characters could die on screen according to the report.

News doesn't get much better than this, frankly. Now if only Gareth Evans could be hired to direct one of the spinoffs...

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'The Raid' Stars Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian go 'Beyond Skyline'

Most American audiences have no clue who Iko Uwais is, but those who have experienced The Raid and its equally amazing sequel, The Raid 2: Berendal know exactly what having him in a film means. But throw in his co-star in both films, Yayan Ruhian, and fans have a reason to be very excited over what they're working on next, even if it's a sequel to a forgettable sci-fi film like Skyline.

Uwais and Ruhian will join Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) in Beyond Skyline, and just by the casting alone this one has a completely different texture than the 2010 film which starred Donald Faison and Eric Balfour. Uwais, who also appeared in Keanu Reeves' directorial debut Man of Tai Chi, will play the leader of an underground rebellion that forms after aliens touch down on Earth. Grillo plays a father in search of his son amidst the chaos. Uwais and Ruhian will also serve as fight choreographers, so again, reason to be very interested in where this film goes.

Liam O'Donnell will write and direct Beyond Skyline with filming to begin next month.

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'The Raid' Star Yayan Ruhian Joins Takashi Miike's 'Yakuza Apocalypse'

How awesome was Yayan Ruhian as the feral and violent Mad Dog in Gareth Evans' The Raid? Even though his character didn't make it out alive, Evans still found a way to get Ruhian in The Raid 2, where he proceeded to kick even more ass using his brutal silat style of martial art. And chances are when The Raid 3 gets rolling Ruhian will be there, too. But before that he'll take a role in Takashi Miike's crazy-sounding vampire flick, Yakuza Apocalypse: The Great War of the Underworld.

Ruhian will join Hayato Ichihara in the film about a yakuza underling who learns his legendary boss is a vampire. When the boss is finally defeated he bites Ichihara before dying, granting him the power to seek revenge against an international gang of assassins, of which Ruhian will play one.

Since this is coming from the prolific Miike and he probably has another movie to get to, expect Yakuza Apocalypse to be wrapped up soon for release in 2015. [ScreenDaily]

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