Rihanna joins Luc Besson’s gigantic alien epic ‘Valerian’

Barbadian songstress Rihanna will join the director of "The Fifth Element," Luc Besson, in his truly-insane-sounding science fiction picture "Valerian," which is set on a space station that houses over 8,000 different species from across the universe.

Besson announced the news of the Rihanna casting on his Instagram with the caption, "RIHANNA is in VALERIAN!!!!! ....and she has a big part!! I'm Sooo excited!!!"

RIHANNA is in VALERIAN!!!!! ....and she has a big part!! I'm Sooo excited!!!¿¿¿¿

A photo posted by @lucbesson on Oct 28, 2015 at 7:44am PDT

Not too much is really known about Besson's next picture. But in a previous meeting with the director (back at San Diego Comic-Con 2015), Besson shared a glimpse into his expansive plan for the movie.

And it sounds intense. The picture is somewhat set on a space station that's 12 miles in diameter but houses millions of beings from across the universe -- including a princess alien whose skin changes color depending on her mood. Fingers crossed that's the role for Rihanna...

“There are basically five living actors in the film -- that’s it,� Besson said at San Diego Comic-Con. “All the rest are creatures.�

The director has also posted a very vague video of behind-the-scenes pre-production work on "Valerian." But without context, we could be looking at anything.

70 days Before the first day of shooting!!¿¿¿¿

A video posted by @lucbesson on Oct 23, 2015 at 9:49am PDT

That being said, "The Fifth Element" is basically a high-water mark of fantastic future world building, so here's hoping this future alien epic takes a page from Besson's past.

Twitter: @MdellW