Shooting has been under way since late February on Lionsgate's Power Rangers movie, and we assumed that the entire cast had been locked down prior to production starting. As it turns out, the studio still has a few tricks up their sleeve, with Bryan Cranston coming aboard to play Zordon. We're not sure at this time if Zordon will be portrayed as he was in the original series, but Zordon serves as the Power Rangers' mentor.
In the original Power Rangers series, Zordon battled with the nefarious Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks), where Rita trapped Zordon in a time warp, while Zordon sends Rita and her minions away to a dumpster on the moon. Zordon established a command center outside of Angel Grove, California, with the help of his robot assistant Alpha 5, which ultimately lead to the creation of the Power Rangers. In the original series, Zordon was portrayed as a hologram, but we don't know if the reboot will take a different approach.
You may recall that Zordon was featured in artist Alex Ruiz's concept art for Power Rangers which surfaced early this year, although that artwork was never used since it was for a director who eventually left the project. It isn't known how this Zordon will look, or if Bryan Cranston will actually be doing any work on the set, or if all of his work will be done during the post-production process. Still, Bryan Cranston coming aboard adds some more star power to the film.
The Power Rangers cast includes Becky G as Yellow Ranger Trini, Ludi Lin as Black Ranger Zack, Dacre Montgomery as Red Ranger Jason, Naomi Scott as Pink Ranger Kimberly, and RJ Cyler as Blue Ranger Billy, who will do battle with Elizabeth Banks' Rita Repulsa. This new update of the Power Rangers TV show follows five ordinary high school kids who must become something extraordinary when they learn that their small town of Angel Grove, and the world, is on the verge of being obliterated by an alien threat. Chosen by destiny, our heroes quickly discover that they are the only ones who can save the planet. But to do so they will have to overcome their real-life issues and band together as the Power Rangers before it is too late.
Bryan Cranston recently lent his voice to DreamWorks Animation's Kung Fu Panda 3, and he also starred in the indie comedy Get a Job earlier this year. He most recently starred in the HBO Films movie All the Way as President Lyndon B. Johnson, and he will next be seen in The Infiltrator and a pair of James Franco-directed movies, In Dubious Battle and The Masterpiece. Take a look at Bryan Cranston's tweet below, along with another from the franchise's official Twitter. We also have a piece of abandoned Zordon concept art.
