With Pitch Perfect 3 on the horizon and currently in the casting phase, fans of the franchise are beginning to get excited for the return of the Barden Bellas. Although dismissed by some as Glee for the big screen - which was itself branded High School Musical for TV - the first Pitch Perfect attracted positive reviews from critics and the film gradually became a box office success, helping to launch the careers of Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson in the process.

2015's sequel brought in even more money and as such, the announcement of a third college a cappella adventure was hardly a surprise. The forthcoming movie sees director Elizabeth Banks hand the rens over to Trish Sie, although the core original cast will all be returning, as well as the franchise's longtime writer Kay Cannon. New faces joining the cast this time around include Andy Allo as a singer belonging to a rival group, as well as John Lithgow and Ruby Rose (Orange Is The New Black, John Wick: Chapter Two) both in undisclosed roles.

Now another name can be added to that growing cast list in the form of Matt Lanter - perhaps best known for voicing Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels. According to Variety, details of the role Lanter will be playing have yet to be revealed. Although Lanter's career is going swimmingly right now with a role in NBC's Timeless, movie-goers might also recognize the actor from the much-maligned spoof flick Disaster Movie.

The fact that Lanter has no notable singing roles on his resume means it's likely the actor will be in a dialogue-only role, rather than a member of a rival a cappella group. Then again, he certainly wouldn't be the first actor to surprise audiences with a hidden singing talent. Given the actor's classic American good looks, he's also perhaps likely to wind up as a potential love interest for one of the central female characters.

Those who watched Pitch Perfect 2 will know that the sequel rounded the Bellas' story off nicely and although many of the central cast members have been confirmed as returning, their characters graduated college and moved on from the Barden Bellas at the end of the last movie. As such, it will be interesting to see how the narrative re-introduces these figures and the movie is certainly at risk of being an installment too many.

With that said, the Pitch Perfect franchise has largely survived on a mix of intelligent wit in its scripts, a talented cast and an awesome soundtrack - and since most of the key figures behind the camera are returning, there's no reason that formula can't be replicated for Pitch Perfect 3. Although the keen direction of Elizabeth Banks - now on Rita Repulsa duty in Power Rangers - will be missed, she will be taking on an executive producer role for the movie, hopefully ensuring that the feel of the past two installments is maintained.

Source: Variety