Speaking to MTV, actor Charlie Hunnam has confirmed that he will not be returning to portray Jaeger pilot Raleigh Becket in the upcoming "Pacific Rim 2: Maelstrom." According to the actor, the main issue preventing him from reprising his role is a conflict in schedule.
The actor continued to explain that the decision to speed up production of the film and the sudden shift of ownership from Legendary Pictures to China's Wanda Group now taking charge of the project were the reasons why he was no longer going to be available.
Hunnam continued to explain that his schedule was already fully booked for some time and that the production company was not willing to wait for his schedule to clear up, instead opting to re-write the story and focus on new characters. However, IGN did point out that there was an iteration of the script where he would be appearing, although this version will no longer push through.
Despite not being able to step into the sequel Hunnam did state positive things about the direction it was heading into, claiming that the story he had read thus far was taking the series into interesting territory which further moved the plot while still being original.
Charlie Hunnam is currently preoccupied with his role as Arthur in "King Arthur: Legend of the Sword," which released its first trailer last week during the San Diego Comic Con.
Without Hunnam, the film is reportedly going to focus instead on a new character being played by "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" star John Boyega. Boyega will be playing the son of Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba), who died during the climax of the first film.
"Pacific Rim 2: Maelstrom" releases in theaters on Feb. 23, 2018.
