The sequel to ‘The Maze Runner,’ titled ‘The Scorch Trials,’ is slated to be released in 2015 and casting news is already coming out! Honestly, this should be no surprise to anyone as the film will need to go into production in October to stick to their current schedule. What is a pleasant surprise is that Aidan Gillen (‘The Wire’, ‘The Dark Knight Rises’) from ‘Game of Thrones’ fame has joined the cast!

Gillen has been cast to take on the role of Janson in the upcoming adaptation of ‘The Scorch Trials.’ His character is the primary villain in the book and is referred to as the character ‘Rat-Man.’ Even though he plays heavily in the second installment of the book series, Ram-Man truly stands out in the third book, ‘The Death Cure.’ If the franchise follows the novels, we should be seeing a little of Gillan in ‘The Scorch Trials’ and a whole lot of him in the final one. Of course, if they go the route of almost any current Young Adult series, the last book will be split into two so we’ll be getting four movies here. (No official announcement has been made on four films, I’m just speculating based off of what almost every other young adult series has done as of late.)

I’m a huge fan of Gillen’s work and am glad to see him getting a larger role. I just hope that the next film in this installment can wow audiences a little more than the first one did.

Are you excited to see Gillen join the cast? Glad that he’s getting more work? Share your thoughts below!

Novel Synopsis:

Solving the Maze was supposed to be the end.

Thomas was sure that escape from the Maze would mean freedom for him and the Gladers. But WICKED isn’t done yet. Phase Two has just begun. The Scorch.

There are no rules. There is no help. You either make it or you die.

The Gladers have two weeks to cross through the Scorch—the most burned-out section of the world. And WICKED has made sure to adjust the variables and stack the odds against them.

Friendships will be tested. Loyalties will be broken. All bets are off.

There are others now. Their survival depends on the Gladers’ destruction—and they’re determined to survive.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter