Bill Hader Joins 'Power Rangers' as Robot Sidekick Alpha 5
The upcoming "Power Rangers" reboot continues to add some surprising names to its cast, with the production announcing this week that Bill Hader has joined the ensemble.
The "Saturday Night Live" alum will play Alpha 5, the Rangers' panic-prone robot sidekick, whose "aye-yi-yi" catchphrase added some comic relief to the campy original series. And it looks like the character in the film will encapsulate that same sensibility, since the official "Power Rangers" Twitter account, which revealed the news, used the catchphrase to welcome Hader to the cast.
Aye-yi-yi! Welcome #BillHader as #Alpha5 to the #PowerRangersMovie - Coming in 2017! pic.twitter.com/tEeJqEPISE
— Power Rangers (@ThePowerRangers) September 22, 2016
While the Rangers will all be played by relative newcomers, Hader joins an ensemble of supporting characters with some pretty big names. The flick first grabbed fans' attentions earlier this year when it cast Elizabeth Banks as villain Rita Repulsa, and then kept the intrigue going with the addition of Emmy and Tony winner Bryan Cranston as Zordon, the giant floating head that advises the Rangers.
The first few images released from the flick have been a bit head-scratching (what's up with that odd, curve-hugging armor for the female Rangers? And why does Rita look like a lizard this time around?), though with such an eclectic and surprisingly starry supporting cast, we're certainly intrigued. And we can't wait to see what Hader -- who helped voice BB-8 in "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," and is likely doing voiceover work with this character, too -- brings to the table.
"Power Rangers" is due in theaters on March 24, 2017.
[via: Power Rangers]
Photo credit: AFP/Getty Images