Dean Israelite's forthcoming hero film "Power Rangers" has found its Blue Ranger.
"Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" actor R.J. Cyler is set to don the blue Power Ranger suit. Lionsgate made the announcement on Twitter and Instagram. The official "Power Rangers" Twitter account tweeted "Ranger Nation! Welcome @RJ_Cyler" to the #PowerRangers Movie team as the Blue Ranger!" The tweet got more than 200 favorites and more than 300 re-tweets.
Aside from Alfonso Gomez-Rejons, Cyler is also known for his role in Rondell Sheridan's family film "Second Chances." He is also set to be part of David Michod's comedy film "War Machine" and Jonathan Levine's television movie "I'm Dying Up Here."
Following Cyler's casting, it is assumed that the next ranger to be cast is the Yellow Ranger. However, the latter may not be the last Ranger to be unveiled, since a Green/White Ranger appeared in the series, as per Tech Times.
According to Variety, Lionsgate and Saban Brands announced last year their plans to develop and yield a live-action film based on Saban's "Power Rangers" property as the first film in the franchise.
The 1993 "Might Morphin Power Rangers" followed a group of teenagers who can morph into superheroes who wear colored costumes tasked to fight monsters that threaten Earth, along with the giant robots called Zords. The Zords can be summoned to battle colossal aliens and they can also assemble themselves into a single fighting robot.
Along with Cyler, "The Martian" actress Naomi Scott is set to play the Pink Ranger while "Betrand the Terrible" actor Dacre Montgomery will play the Red Ranger. Recently, "The Shannon Entropy" actor Ludi Lin has been cast to play the Black Ranger.
Aside from Israelite as the film's director,"X-Men: First Class" writers Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz are on board to pen the script of the upcoming "Power Rangers."
Israelite's new "Power Rangers" is slated to premiere in theaters in the United States on Jan. 13, 2017.