'Star Wars 7' News, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ryan Gosling: 'Great Gatsby' Star Turns Down Role in 2015's 'Episode VII'? 'Drive' Actor Cast as Luke Skywalker's Son?

Casting rumors surrounding J.J. Abrams' Star Wars: Episode VII have been coming in from every direction for several months now. What definitely helped spread rumors were numerous occasions where actors were asked by interviewers if they would be interested in a role for the film. Pretty much everyone said they would be, and one of those actors was Leonardo DiCaprio. So why are there reports claiming he turned down a role in the 2015 movie?

Reports are claiming that DiCaprio was approached for a role in Episode VII but had to turn it down for another movie he was hoping to do. Leonardo has been circling the Robotech film project for quite some time, so he had to make a decision. He went with Robotech.

In other casting news, Ryan Gosling reportedly "went in for Skywalker's son. Yes, that's right Luke's kid," according to a source. Also, Zac Efron "could be a Solo kid."

Mstars recently reported on some other casting news involving Gosling and Efron. Here is an excerpt:

Ryan Gosling has reportedly read for the part of Luke Skywalker's son in the new sequel. This is clearly just a rumor, but with production of the film starting in early 2014, casting is definitely going to be going down soon. Another name rumored to have read for a part is Zac Efron, though his role is still a mystery. These are two of the biggest names in young Hollywood, so it looks like Episode VII is taking full advantage of its draw with actors.

Last month, a casting call sheet was released and published online. Lucasfilm confirmed that it was indeed an official call sheet, so we got to see some descriptions of characters. Here is what it said:

• Late-teen female, independent, good sense of humor, fit.
• Young twenty-something male, witty and smart, fit but not traditionally good looking.
• A late twentysomething male, fit, handsome and confident.
• Seventy-something male, with strong opinions and tough demeanor. Also doesn't need to be particularly fit.
• A second young female, also late teens, tough, smart and fit.
• Forty something male, fit, military type.
• Thirtysomething male, intellectual. Apparently doesn't need to be fit.

Reports claims that these roles would be going to lesser-known or unknown actors, leaving room for some higher profile stars for more prominent roles. So names like Efron and Gosling definitely make sense for the bigger roles (although they could both easily fit some of the described characters above).