Who Is Rogue One: A Star Wars Story’s Droid Character K-2SO?

The second trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story has debuted, and now that the world is getting a deeper look at Godzilla director Gareth Edwards’ Star Wars spinoff, there are curiosities that need to be answered. And one of the biggest standouts of this latest trailer was the new droid character who will make his debut in Rogue One: K-2SO.

Here’s what you need to know about a potential new breakout star of the Star Wars universe.

He was once a bad guy.

As you can clearly see in the trailer and in promotional photos, K-2SO started out in the service of The Empire. He was reprogrammed by Captain Cassain Andor (Diego Luna) to serve the Rebellion.

He’s Played by a Geek Icon.

Mainstream viewers may not recognize Alan Tudyk’s name or face right off the bat, but in the halls of Comic-Con, the actor is an icon. He first broke out of Avengers writer/director Joss Whedon’s ensemble of actor friends, starring in Whedon’s cult-hit sci-fi western TV series, Firefly, which later was adapted into the movie Serenity. Since then he’s been a cult-fav of the small screen (Dollhouse, Suburgatory), animation TV/Film (Young Justice, Ice Age) and even some memorable film turns (Steve the Pirate in Dodgeball FTW!). Needless to say, Tudyk is going to have more trouble than ever making his way around the halls of the ‘Con, once K-2SO has become a household name.

He’s got a strong personality.

K-2SO was reprogrammed to be able to have personality and the freedom to speak his mind – and from the trailer we can clearly see that the personality he’s settled on is frank, unfiltered and sarcastic. Tudyk compares him to an ‘old person.’ Combined with his big stature, K-2SO is like a perfect C-3PO/Chewbacca companion for Cassain and the main protagonist Jyn Orso (Felicity Jones).

Tudyk sought council from C-3PO

As Alan Tudyk told the audience at this year’s Star Wars Celebration panel, he spoke to C-3PO actor Anthony Daniels about creating the biting sarcasm of a droid character; he even shared a funny anecdote about meeting Daniels (via /Film):

I met him at that party, at the opening night [for The Force Awakens]. I said, “I’m K-2SO. I’m going to be the next droid in the series of droids.” He said, “Do you wear a suit or are you CGI?” I said, “Oh, I’m CGI.” And he said, “You shit.” Lovely man. We’re pen pals. Pen pals to this day.

Always good to see black and gold droids getting along. In all seriousness, Tudyk is lucky to have CGI in this day and age: Daniels was in the desert in that C-3PO suit (talk about commitment). No wonder “3PO” always had an attitude; what’s K-2SO’s excuse going to be?

WATCH: Rogue One Character Interview with Alan Tudyk.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Official Synopsis

…In a time of conflict, a group of unlikely heroes band together on a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empire’s ultimate weapon of destruction. This key event in the Star Wars timeline brings together ordinary people who choose to do extraordinary things, and in doing so, become part of something greater than themselves.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is directed by Gareth Edwards and stars Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen, Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Riz Ahmed, with Jiang Wen and Forest Whitaker. Kathleen Kennedy, Allison Shearmur and Simon Emanuel are producing, with John Knoll and Jason McGatlin serving as executive producers.

WATCH: ROGUE ONE Trailer #2

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story will be in theaters on December 16, 2016, followed by Star Wars: Episode VIII on December 15, 2017, the Han Solo Star Wars Anthology film on May 25, 2018, Star Wars: Episode IX in 2019, and the third Star Wars Anthology film in 2020.