Matt Smith has officially joined the cast of Star Wars 9. J.J. Abrams is currently filming the final chapter of this new Star Wars trilogy, which kicked off production at the beginning of the month at Pinewood Studios. The cast has been growing since cameras started rolling and now, the former Doctor Who star has joined the ensemble in an as-of-yet undisclosed role. Though, the report does state that he's been cast in a key character.

It's unclear at the present time if Matt Smith will be portraying someone aligned with The Resistance or someone on the side of the First Order. There's also the chance he could be portraying someone who rides the line, such as Benicio Del Toro's DJ from The Last Jedi. Smith joins several other cast members who are making their way to a galaxy far, far away, such as Richard E. Grant, Keri Russell and Dominic Monaghan. Abrams is clearly happy to bring along some people he's worked with in the past, as Russell starred in Felicity and Monaghan was a major player in Lost.

J.J. Abrams doesn't have any previous working connections to Matt Smith, but the actor is no stranger to the world of science fiction. The 35-year-old actor spent several seasons as the Time Lord on Doctor Who and remains a fan-favorite in the role. Smith also starred in Terminator: Genisys in a small role that probably would have been expanded upon, had further sequels actually happened. More recently, Smith has portrayed Prince Phillip in Netflix's acclaimed drama The Crown, which earned him an Emmy nomination. Smith is also set to play Charles Manson in Charlie Says, which debuts at the Venice Film Festival this weekend.

Returning cast members from the new trilogy include Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Kelly Marie Tran and Adam Driver. Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels will reprise their roles as Luke Skywalker and C-3PO respectively, with Billy Dee Williams also set to make his return as Lando Calrissian for the first time in live-action since Return of the Jedi. Carrie Fisher will also be back as Leia Organa, with Lucasfilm making use of footage that was shot for The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi that wound up on the cutting room floor.

As one might expect, plot details for the movie are currently being kept tightly under wraps. Save for a few intriguing set photos, it's mostly been speculation up to this point. Star Wars 9 is being billed as the final chapter in the Skywalker saga and, at the present time, it's the only officially announced title being worked on right now within the franchise. Disney and Lucasfilm have no other movies dated, for the time being. Though, Rian Johnson is developing his trilogy, with David Benioff and D.B. Weiss working on a series of movies as well. Star Wars Episode IX is set to arrive in theaters on December 20, 2019. This news originated with Variety.