Eva Mendes will reportedly appear alongside her husband, Ryan Gosling, in Star Wars: Starfighter, potentially bringing her back to the big screen after more than a decade away.
A new casting report places Mendes in a minor role in director Shawn Levy’s upcoming film, following earlier rumors that she would play a cantina owner. The appearance would also give her an opportunity to work with Gosling again, something she expressed interest in doing in 2024.
Ryan Gosling and Flynn Gray in Star Wars: Starfighter – Disney, Lucasfilm
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However, the latest report is separate from an official Lucasfilm announcement, and the more colorful details surrounding her character remain unconfirmed.
Mendes Reportedly Playing a Cantina Owner
According to Knight Edge Media, Mendes will appear in Starfighter as an intergalactic cantina owner. The outlet describes her expected involvement as a minor role, suggesting a limited appearance rather than a leading part opposite Gosling.
The rumor had been circulating since at least July, when the MakingStarWars.net account on X offered a considerably more specific description.
In Star Wars: Starfighter, I also heard Eva Mendes is playing a fully glammed out cantina owner named Belle. She is 650 years old with gold skintight pants, corset with a golden cape. Bespin also heard about that casting a bit ago but did not report on it.
— MakingStarWars.net (@MakingStarWars) July 6, 2026
“In Star Wars: Starfighter, I also heard Eva Mendes is playing a fully glammed out cantina owner named Belle,” the account posted. “She is 650 years old with gold skintight pants, corset with a golden cape. Bespin also heard about that casting a bit ago but did not report on it.”
The new report aligns with the earlier claim about her character’s occupation. However, that does not independently establish the rumored name, age, or costume. Those details should still be treated as an alleged description of the role.
Mendes Previously Expressed Interest in Reuniting With Gosling
The prospective appearance follows Mendes’ public interest in another collaboration with Gosling.
As Vanity Fair reported in October 2024, she told the UK’s Times that working with him again was “the one thing I would love to do.”
The pair previously appeared in The Place Beyond the Pines, and Mendes also acted in Gosling’s directorial debut, Lost River.
Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling – The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, YouTube
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Her extended absence from film acting was a deliberate family decision. During a March 2024 Today appearance covered by People, Mendes described stepping away to raise their daughters, Esmeralda and Amada, as “a no-brainer.”
She explained that she continued working but preferred to avoid acting’s travel demands: “Acting takes you on location. It takes you away.”
A small appearance alongside Gosling would fit her previously expressed interest in another collaboration. It would not, by itself, establish that Mendes intends to resume a regular schedule of film roles.
Starfighter Arrives in May 2027
Lucasfilm has described Star Wars: Starfighter as a standalone adventure set approximately five years after The Rise of Skywalker. Directed by Levy and starring Gosling, the film is scheduled to arrive in theaters on May 28, 2027.
A look at Ryan Gosling’s character in the upcoming Star Wars: Starfighter movie – Lucasfilm
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Gosling plays Kade Auberon, a rogue whose mysterious past draws him into a dangerous adventure across the galaxy. During Disney’s D23 presentation, the actor described Kade as coming from “the wrong side of the galaxy,” with his fate tied to the fastest starfighter ever built.
For Mendes, the reported role would offer a chance to revisit screen acting through a project involving someone she has specifically said she wants to work with again. Whether Belle’s elaborate rumored appearance makes it into the finished film remains to be seen.
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