Lokesh Kanagaraj breaks down the creative intent restricting Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan’s character swaps

Lokesh Kanagaraj, who is gearing up for the release of Coolie starring Rajinikanth, opened up about the casting process and whether this film connects to his larger cinematic universe. In a recent conversation with Bharadwaj Rangan, he addressed speculation over Kamal Haasan’s possible involvement and the idea of character swaps between the two Tamil cinema legends.

The director stated clearly that Coolie is not part of the Lokesh Cinematic Universe (LCU), unlike Vikram which starred Kamal Haasan. “This is another standalone film which has nothing to do with my universe,” he said, cutting off theories that the film might be connected to his earlier works.

When asked about Kamal Haasan possibly being considered for Coolie, Lokesh clarified that the thought never crossed his mind. “Nowhere during the making of Coolie did I want Kamal Haasan to be part of it,” he stated.

However, he did speak about the deep admiration he has for both actors, saying that if there ever comes a time when he wants them to collaborate, he would be “ready to beg on his knees.” That said, he also explained why these particular roles couldn’t be interchanged. “What’s clear to me is why Rajni sir shouldn’t do Vikram and Kamal sir shouldn't do Coolie. Because it was written for both of them,” Lokesh said. The characters were created keeping their individual strengths and legacies in mind, and assigning them each other’s roles wouldn’t have been right. “So that wouldn’t be fair,” he added.

In another earlier interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Lokesh had shared that Rajinikanth agreed to do Coolie after hearing just the first half of the script. “I narrated only the first half and paused at the interval block to ask if he’d be interested. He immediately said yes,” he recalled. At that point, the second half wasn’t even written. Now, with Coolie set to release on August 14, Lokesh’s vision for distinct, purpose-built characters is coming into sharper focus—separate from the LCU but still deeply rooted in his storytelling choices.