Benicio del Toro could soon be headed to “space: the final frontier”…

The 44-year-old Puerto Rican actor is currently in talks to appear in the Star Trek sequel, as confirmed by the film’s director J.J. Abrams.

“Well, we’re just in negotiations, we’re in discussions,” Abrams told MTV News. “It’s not even negotiations—just in discussion. But I would love
to work with him. I’ve wanted to work with him for years, and this felt like a good opportunity. It’s too early to talk about what the role is, but he’s such an amazing actor. He’s so versatile. He could sort of do anything. Except play Uhura. I wouldn’t buy that.”

Abrams reportedly wants Del Toro to play a villain in the sequel to Star Trek, the critically acclaimed 2009 reboot of the Star Trek film franchise that earned a total worldwide gross of $385,494,555.

If Del Toro and Abrams can come to an agreement, he’d star opposite much of the same cast, including fellow Hispanic star Zoe Saldana, who plays Nyota Uhura.

del Toro won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a BAFTA Award for his role as Javier Rodríguez in Traffic.