Divergent sequel Insurgent is continuing to expand its cast, and in the past few days alone, we’ve seen talented performers like Naomi Watts, Daniel Dae Kim and Rosa Salazar come aboard. Now, Deadline is reporting that the important part of Uriah has gone to Keiynan Lonsdale, who starred on the Australian TV show Dance Academy.
Uriah is an initiate alongside protagonist Tris Prior (Shailene Woodley), who grows closer to her as the stakes get higher in Insurgent and its sequel, Allegiant (being split into two films by Summit Entertainment). Though Uriah first appeared in Veronica Roth’s Divergent, he did not pop up in the film adaptation, which grossed over $267 million worldwide earlier this year.
In the Divergent franchise, people are sorted into factions based on their attributes. There’s Candor (honesty), Erudite (intelligence), Dauntless (bravery), Abnegation (selflessness) and Amity (peacefulness). When Tris is found to be ‘Divergent,’ possessing personality traits that don’t make her an easy fit for any one faction, she finds herself the target of a sinister plot by Jeanine Matthews (Kate Winslet), the leader of Erudite. Uriah is a member of Dauntless who also discovers himself to be Divergent. When Tris leads the charge against Jeanine, he stands by her side.
Filming on Insurgent is currently underway in Atlanta. Robert Schwentke (R.I.P.D., Red 2) is directing, taking the reins from Neil Burger. Schwentke is working from a script from Brian Duffield and Akiva Goldsman.
In addition to Woodley, Theo James, Kate Winslet, Jai Courtney, Ray Stevenson, Zoë Kravitz, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Maggie Q and Mekhi Phifer are all returning for the sequel. They’ll star alongside new additions like Watts, Dae Kim, Salazar, Octavia Spencer, Suki Waterhouse and Jonny Weston.
Insurgent arrives on March 20th, 2015.
As she searches for allies and answers in the wake of the uprising, Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) are on the run. Being hunted by Jeanine Matthews (Kate Winslet), the leader of the Erudite faction, Tris and Four will race against time as they try to figure out Jeanine’s master plan and do whatever it takes to stop her and her people from carrying it out.