Editorial – Why The New Han Solo Movie Will (Probably) Be Fine.

han-solo-movie-confirmed

Since it has been announced, the planned Han Solo prequel has been the subject of controversy among Star Wars fans, with many ambivalent at the prospect of anyone but Harrison Ford playing the titular space pirate. Here’s why we think the movie is going to work out just fine, and why people shouldn’t get too worried over the movie.

 

On May 22, 2014, the floodgates were opened for Star Wars spin-offs when it was announced that movies for the franchise would be released annually, starting with the Gareth Edwards-directed project now known as Rogue One. Generally speaking, this reveal was met with a mix of excitement from fans who wanted to get more of their Star Wars fix and a degree of indifference from those who weren’t as interested in movies outside of the Sequel Trilogy. Rumors of Boba Fett and Obi-Wan movies stirred around, exciting many fans… And then came Han Solo, which has left the fandom divided over its very concept. Sure, you have a number of fans looking forward to more Star Wars (and are grateful that Lucasfilm is providing a greater insight into the era between the Prequel and Original Trilogies), but there are still a lot of people who have taken to looking at the movie as an unnecessary cash-grab at best and a potential trainwreck that could jeopardize the legacy of the character at worst.

 

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Right now, there is very little we know about the Han Solo film (which makes sense, considering that it’s still two movies out and hasn’t even started production). We do know that it’s going to be something of an “origin story” for the character set between the events of Revenge of the Sith and Rogue One, but we have little to know what that story is going to entail (aside from the few hints in-canon that suggest that we may see how and why Chewie made a life-debt to Han, and rumors that we might see how Han got the Millennium Falcon from Lando). In May, Alden Ehrenreich (Hail, Caesar!) was officially cast as the younger version of the swashbuckler, and more recently, Lucasfilm announced that it cast Donald Glover (Community) as Lando Calrissian in the film. (Based on the comments on our site and the forum, the consensus seems to be that Glover’s casting has been well-received.) Variety has also reported that there will be a major role for a black actress (quite possibly be Sana Starros from the Star Wars comic books), with Tessa Thompson, Zoe Kravitz, and Naomi Scott as potential candidates to play this character.

 

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While Ehrenreich may not look a whole lot like Ford, the directors of the film have indicated that he absolutely nailed his audition and that he’s going to get the character right. Glover bears a closer resemblance to Billy Dee Williams, but like Ehrenreich, the young actor has pretty big shoes to fill (though he at least has less pressure placed upon him). Aside from Ehrenreich, who has to deal with the so-called crime of having to play Han while not being Harrison Ford, there have not been any real objections to the cast assembled for the picture thus far (unless you’re Billy Dee Williams). Basically, the grievances around this movie continue to be about the character it’s about more than the actual talent involved – and that’s where we feel the movie will surprise fans.

 

Phil Lord & Chris Miller

 

For starters, you have co-directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller collaborating once again to work on the project – rising stars in Hollywood who already have a string of hits under their belt early on in their careers. The way we see it is this: if these two managed to turn a movie about overpriced building blocks into The LEGO Movie – one of the better animated films recently  – then they can find a way to make one of the toughest pitches to Star Wars fans work. As mentioned earlier, they’re extremely confident in Alden Ehrenreich’s acting ability, as they’ve stated on multiple occasions – since Ehrenreich will either make or break the movie, their confidence in him and and their consistent commitment to quality both suggest that the movie will turn out just fine. That’s not even getting into the fact that the film also has Lawrence Kasdan – the scribe who arguably understands the character of Han Solo more than any other writer – handling the screenplay (alongside his son, Jon). Or the fact that Kasdan’s script was praised by concept artist Iain McCaig as one of the best he’d ever read.

 

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In addition to the talent to look forward to, there is also the tone, which is sure to be unique in this growing Star Wars universe. Han Solo will provide us with a unique set of viewpoints that could combine to build something truly fresh for a Star Wars movie, especially considering that the movie will be the first in the series to not have anything to do with the Force. Lucasfilm is creating a movie that will undoubtedly exist in the underbelly of the Star Wars universe and focus on a story of smugglers, space pirates, and gangsters; at the same time, it won’t all be some cynical attempt to make the dynamic Star Wars galaxy into some sort of gritty crime drama. This film is being directed by comedy directors, people who will surely bring some of Han’s trademark sarcasm and dry humor into a world of crime, illegal racing, and gambling, but on top that, these comedy directors will be working with an award winning cinematographer in Bradford Young who will bring his unique visual palette and dynamic style to the Star Wars underworld.

 

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And as far as story goes, there are no guarantees obviously, but if one wants to look for the benefits of going back into earlier times in the life of Solo and Lando, one need look no further that Marvel’s Star Wars comics. Of all the comics released since Marvel started carpet bombing us with new Star Wars content, the most universally praised have been the Lando and Han Solo limited series. These isolated glimpses into Mr. Calrissian and Mr. Solo’s life in the underbelly of society in the galaxy far, far, away have been the most emotional, the most exciting, and the most memorable to many fans. Much of this can be chalked up to great writers and artists delivering those stories, but it does show that these characters are ripe for exploration and their dynamic histories make for fascinating exploration.

 

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Finally, regardless of all the arguments made above and the inherent risks and pitfalls of this going back to reexamine a young Han Solo, there is one more argument that is difficult to push aside for the potential of a Han Solo movie: the character’s creator wanted it.

 

 

 

 

For most fans, Harrison Ford not playing the character is probably the biggest reason why some people just can’t go along with this new Han Solo film. Some fans might never get over the fact that that Harrison Ford is no longer playing the iconic character. However, if Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Bradford Young, and Jon and Lawrence Kasdan can work together to capture the magic of the Star Wars Galaxy, and if Ehrenreich can pull off a good take on the title character, Han Solo just might work. The movie hits cinemas May 25, 2018.

 

 

+ posts

Grant has been a fan of Star Wars for as long as he can remember, having seen every movie on the big screen. When he’s not hard at work with his college studies, he keeps himself busy by reporting on all kinds of Star Wars news for SWNN and general movie news on the sister site, Movie News Net. He served as a frequent commentator on SWNN’s The Resistance Broadcast.

Grant Davis (Pomojema)

Grant has been a fan of Star Wars for as long as he can remember, having seen every movie on the big screen. When he’s not hard at work with his college studies, he keeps himself busy by reporting on all kinds of Star Wars news for SWNN and general movie news on the sister site, Movie News Net. He served as a frequent commentator on SWNN’s The Resistance Broadcast.

104 thoughts on “Editorial – Why The New Han Solo Movie Will (Probably) Be Fine.

  • October 25, 2016 at 10:05 pm
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    I guess all we can do is wait and see. I’m definitely gonna see it…I hope its good. But then again, if it sucks, then we can move on from the established character movies, and do something more original.

    One thing I disagree with, is that Donald Glover looks like Billy Dee…seriously?
    I don’t understand why everyone is saying that Donald resembles Billy Dee. They do not look anything alike to me… Or sound alike…or act alike. I’m in the minority that doesn’t think its good casting, I guess.

    • October 26, 2016 at 3:21 am
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      I’ll see it for sure, but I’m going to wait for the reviews before deciding to plunk down twenty bucks at the theater or rent it (do people ‘rent’ movies anymore?) for a home viewing.

  • October 25, 2016 at 10:06 pm
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    my lack of faith is disturbing. I will never give this film a chance…don’t care how good the script is…or the actors for that matter…That’s not Han Solo…that’s not Lando. That would be like me coming home to see that my family has been replaced and have everyone expect me to use my imagination and pretend it was really them. you wont catch me in that theater…they should have made an Animated solo movie and just had Harrison Ford do voice acting. You can all troll and make fun of me all you like…I wont budge. 🙂 The minute this guy opens his mouth, anyone who knows Han Solo will instantly be taken out of the film and the fantasy will be ruined.

    • October 25, 2016 at 11:28 pm
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      You saw the movie already? Chinese hackers are getting good…

      • October 26, 2016 at 6:23 am
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        Re: “Chinese hackers are getting good…”
        But Russian hackers are better! 😉

    • October 26, 2016 at 12:45 am
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      I’m with you

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:14 am
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      Opinions are all well and good, but can you not speak for the rest of us, please? I mean, if “anyone who knows Han Solo will instantly be taken out of the film”, then “anyone who knows Han Solo” must be some pretty petty, intolerable people. =/

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:50 am
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      Never giving something a chance is a poor habit to have.

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:55 am
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      Ewan McGregor channeled Alec Guinness. Even one of this forums most notorious trolls and hater of the Han Solo flick rocks a young Obi-Wan instead of the original as his avatar. His name, Ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi, would even suggest he SHOULD have an avatar of Guiness, instead of Ewan.

      Interesting, no?

      Why can’t someone else do Ford?

      Also, he’s not that great an actor. He’s good, he’s beloved, and a huge part of my childhood as Han and Indie. But the guy pretty much plays the same person, grumpy Harrison Ford, in every role he’s ever done.

      I’m pretty sure someone can do grumpy Harrison Ford at 22.

      • October 26, 2016 at 6:22 am
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        Re: “he’s not that great an actor. He’s good, he’s beloved, and a huge part of my childhood as Han and Indie”
        Have to agree with you.
        AND… historically he was one of my favorite actors.
        Not because I ever thought he was great/amazing but just very good at being “him” (well – his std character, the good guy/everyman, cynical w/heart).

        He’s been in so many good & even great films. I think that he (/his agent) have just known how to pick the best rolls that fit him.

        Re: “Why can’t someone else do Ford?”
        I’d honestly rather they *didn’t*.
        Ewan McGregor definitely channeled Alec Guinness. Because he DID succeed at that difficult task (he’s a great actor, imho) I would’ve preferred Ewan reprising an older Obi-Wan on his Tatooine/Luke protector days than a younger Han Solo flick.

        Here’s hoping Alden can pull off a convincing Han.

    • October 26, 2016 at 3:20 am
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      I think you’re wrong to be dead set against this movie from the start. Yes, it’s going to be different, but that doesn’t mean it’s guaranteed to be a failure. Lord and Miller have bought a whole lot of goodwill for me, generally turning shitty sounding ideas into really enjoyable movies. Given the horrendous number of incredible tricky moving targets involved in making this movie work, I don’t however think healthy skepticism is out of line. I think this will be one of those films that either soars like crazy or crashes and burns – I have a feeling there’s not going to be an in-between ‘meh’ with this one.

    • October 26, 2016 at 5:00 am
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      But you’re still gonna see it though.

    • October 28, 2016 at 6:38 am
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      I know what you mean, and I had a hard time buying it at first, but I might feel differently when watching it. With the new Star Trek I can’t think of the new Kirk as ‘Kirk’. However the portrayal of Spock is decent enough for me to believe it- that’s what makes me hold out hope for the Han solo movie.

  • October 25, 2016 at 10:09 pm
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    Change is good. I’m willing to give this film a chance, and am actually kind of excited to see how it turns out. Like getting over a breakup, you need to embrace this new course in life rather than wallow in complaints.

  • October 25, 2016 at 10:37 pm
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    I have more faith in actors and Kasdan than the directors.
    Their experience is almost animation. Yes, i really enjoyed Lego with my son but at least Gareth has similarities with previous jobs. Monsters i think it’s brilliant and Godzilla has some good points. Rogue One seems share some aspects of those movies.
    If it was a Han Solo older with no Harrison probably would be more difficult to see. I think i can handle a younger Solo from ANH events (not like seeing Ewan as a younger Kenobi but closer). In my opinion Alden is absolutely brilliant in acting skills.
    Definetly i will see this movie. I love Star Wars universe, the events, the ships, the environments… Let’s see what they do

    • October 26, 2016 at 6:29 pm
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      What a wasted opportunity to do a Han Solo animated movie….

  • October 25, 2016 at 10:37 pm
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    Robert De Niro didn’t look like Marlon Brando, but his performance as the young Vito Corleone in The Godfather Part II was still fantastic.

    • October 25, 2016 at 10:47 pm
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      It was good, but whenever anyone thinks about Don Vito Corleone they think of Brando, not De Niro. Plus, De Niro’s Vito was a good 30 years younger than Brando’s. Ehrenreich’s Solo is only a few years younger than Ford’s. The problem was the whole thing is that Han Solo is so closely linked with the look, speech and mannerisms of Ford. Even if Ehrenreich does a phenomenal job, it will still seem just like an imitation rather than the real thing.

      • October 25, 2016 at 11:28 pm
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        Whenever someone thinks of Han Solo they will think Ford. Doesn’t mean the movie’s going to suck.

      • October 26, 2016 at 12:12 am
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        This. I mean, River Pheonix was 30 years younger than Ford and nobody had a problem with him as young Indy, but these seems too close to home in terms of time.

        • October 26, 2016 at 3:21 am
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          Even though Ford suggested Phoenix, as much as I love LC, I never bought him as Indy.

          • October 26, 2016 at 10:24 am
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            Never bothered me. After all he wasn’t the star and he wasn’t any less convincing than the other various Young and Old Indy versions. But Ford was still Indy throughout so I suppose that was the difference for me.

          • October 26, 2016 at 6:27 pm
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            5 years difference is okay when the actors are 5 and 10. Maybe even 10 and 15. But 20 and 25 or 25 and 30 as in our case there has to be significant resemblance otherwise the suspention of disbelief is gone in the first second. If it was really so much needed this movie about young Solo, even when I’m not interested in seeing his preANH adventures, I would accept it and include to my personal canon – if the guy is no older then 15. Then I would think Okey, he will change his facial, grow 20-30 cm……now, as someone stated, it will be just 2 years waiting for the next SW movie….

      • October 26, 2016 at 2:22 am
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        Well sure, but just because Brando is the more memorable one, doesn’t mean that De Niro was bad. Nobody will forget Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal, but the current TV prequel Hannibal isn’t made a poor choice by comparison. Even though one is more memorable, the other isn’t made bad because of it.

        Let me ask you this, too: How much did you notice that Walking Chewie wasn’t Peter Mayhew in TFA? And before you say “well he’s wearing a full-body suit so I can’t see him”, I’m talking specifically about the movements and mannerisms, something Joonas spent many hours perfecting with Peter as a coach. Did you see an imitation, or did you see Chewbacca?

        • October 26, 2016 at 2:56 am
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          I did notice that Chewie is shorter then I remembered…

          • October 26, 2016 at 12:43 pm
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            Oh come on! He just 3,5 inches smaller than Mayhew!

          • October 26, 2016 at 6:19 pm
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            And yet it crashed in my eyes every time he was standing near other heroes

      • October 26, 2016 at 2:50 am
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        I think of de Niro because he was in the better movie.

    • October 25, 2016 at 11:38 pm
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      Don’t do it! When you wanna go to it!

      – Pomojema

      • October 25, 2016 at 11:48 pm
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        Lol.

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:25 am
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      …can I just say I want to make a parody account of you called “Grand_Admiral_Ducks” and photoshop a rubber duck over your avatar’s face? xD

    • October 26, 2016 at 6:09 am
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      I don’t get this response –
      Crystal Skull was Lucas’ idea, Spielberg directed, and you’re grateful Lucas has no involvement with Indy 5.
      Yet here we have it confirmed that these movies were Lucas’ ideas & yet we should relax?

      Confusing….

      • October 26, 2016 at 7:19 am
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        huge difference between lucas saying, hey how about a han solo spinoff and then hands it off to a proven writer and two great directors and him coming up with the plot and writing another indy movie after the previous disaster. time to move on.

  • October 25, 2016 at 11:16 pm
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    Hopefully Ehrenreich will be playing a young 20’s Solo. He’s 26 so its possible to play say 22, so by the time ANH comes around and the character is 29 he would of become more grizzled. They just need to keep the time gap big enough so we know its a younger Solo, setting it a couple of years before ANH and the ‘classic’ Solo/Ford just around the corner isn’t going to work.

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:24 am
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      Yeah, if anything, I’ll agree with this: Alden is too fresh-faced and cocky-looking to match Cantina Solo. Make sure it’s at least half a decade or more BBY.

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:34 am
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      Han is no longer necessarily 29 in ANH, might be a bit closer to the shooting age. Harrison was 34 at the time.

      • October 26, 2016 at 2:51 am
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        Yarp. Solo’s age is not canon currently.

      • October 26, 2016 at 11:27 am
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        That would certainly help and allow the Solo film to be set nearer to RotS than ANH.

      • October 27, 2016 at 3:23 am
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        That would make Han ~15 years older than Leia though, so some people might have a problem with it.

        • October 27, 2016 at 5:15 pm
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          But not 10 or 11? I don’t know how 15 makes it automatically bad if they are both consenting adults. Maybe they’ll split hairs and make his age 31.5 in ANH. lol

  • October 25, 2016 at 11:31 pm
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    I feel confident in this movie. Danny Glover is absolute GOLD as Young-Lando —- and with LAWRENCE KASDAN behind the script — the film will feel AUTHENTIC. I’m more excited for this every day.

    • October 25, 2016 at 11:47 pm
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      *Donald Glover. Danny Glover is too old for this sh*t. 😉

  • October 25, 2016 at 11:33 pm
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    I am more and more excited for Han Solo movie. At first, I almost didn’t care, but now when I think about that, movie will be pure fun. It won’t be most complex movie ever, it will be simple adventure movie with Han and Chewie in Falcon, after he gets it, and it could be really good space pirate/western movie

    • October 25, 2016 at 11:42 pm
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      PIRATE / WESTERN —- you just NAILED IT man !

      • October 26, 2016 at 2:33 am
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        At least that’s what I think it will be, and I hope it will be

    • October 26, 2016 at 7:14 pm
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      Its gonna be like Spaceballs…. I hope.

  • October 26, 2016 at 12:06 am
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    Can’t wait for that first teaser!
    Even though it’s likely over a year away.. lol..

  • October 26, 2016 at 12:45 am
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    And oh, boy, are we gonna get it

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:58 am
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      I’m making a word file right now. I’m going to copy paste comments like this and catalog them for the future. It’ll be a forum time capsule. Then we’ll open it after the film comes out and see what everyone is saying about it then!

      Exciting.

      • October 26, 2016 at 3:34 pm
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        Here’s one..FUCK THIS MOVIE.

        I hope I end up loving it though. Maybe I’ll look at my comment in the future and think that I was but an ‘ignorant’ fellow. Lol

  • October 26, 2016 at 1:08 am
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    Why did he say this will be the first SW movie that has nothing to do with the Force? That was the whole idea of Rogue One – ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

    • October 26, 2016 at 1:19 am
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      Force Awakens had no Luke but the entire movie dealt with his absence. I think Rogue One there will be no Jedi but a big factor will be the galaxy trying to move on without them. This of course will bring up a lot of Force talk probably by way of Donnie Yen’s character.

    • October 26, 2016 at 1:28 am
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      One of the planets they’ll go to is apparently a Jedi holy world. The Force will most definitely come up.

      What they (hopefully) meant is that there won’t be a focus on Force-*users*. No lightsabers, no ex-Jedi, etc.

  • October 26, 2016 at 2:52 am
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    “if Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Bradford Young, and Jon and Lawrence Kasdan can work together to capture the magic of the Star Wars Galaxy, and if Ehrenreich can pull off a good take on the title character, Han Solo just might work.”
    .
    You DO realize just how many ‘ifs’ that is? I mean, you could LITERALLY structure a sentence that way about, I don’t know, yet another Alvin and the Chipmunks ‘squeakel’, or a Twilight continuation, or god forbid a second, third, fourth, and fifth Avatar movie, and have it mean just as much. IF the directors nail the tone; IF Kasdan and Kasdan can produce a script that shows more life than anything Sr has produced in decades; IF the cinematography is decent; IF Ehrenreich manages to capture the spirit of what has to be the last, true matinee hero at the ascendency of his career…it might, possibly, maybe turn out okay. That kind of thinking doesn’t exactly do a whole lot to assuage my apprehension about this over this project.

    • October 26, 2016 at 3:24 am
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      i don’t get the anger here. even if this movie is a total train wreck(which it won’t be) you’ll still have the original han to watch to your heart’s content. so give these people the chance to fail, at the very least.

    • October 26, 2016 at 4:27 am
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      All could be said for ANY project ever made. IF, IF, IF.

    • October 26, 2016 at 5:17 am
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      The point of the wording is that none of the ‘If’s’ are very big ‘If’s’ as evidenced in the structured arguments above. Even if one of those ‘If’s’ falls flat, and the others rise, all will be well. I think we can trust in the production team not to greenlight and see through a piece-of-shit flop. There is a lot of money riding on it. The real risk is that we may get a 3/5 star run-of-the-mill bland Avenger’s Gen 1 & 2 style movie that is decent, entertaining, but lacks spark or originality. The real reason we are getting a Han Solo film is that Guardian’s of the Galaxy, featuring Star Lord (a character similar in nature to Han Solo) was a surprise financial and critical smash hit. They want more of that.

      I think this article neglects to address the real reason why most of us core fans are crankypants about this: There are so many better ideas within this infinite fictional universe, why did they choose this one above films focused on Obi-Wan, Yoda, between RotJ/TFA, Revan, or The Old Republic? All of which would be more appealing to core fans.

      I think I’ve already answered this, GotG. $$ bills y’all. And sure, ‘George wanted it’ – and we all love George for giving us this world. But no-one loved feasting on a hearty healthy billion dollar cash-cow more than George and his ever-consistent rampant merchandising ways.

    • October 26, 2016 at 12:38 pm
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      You have those “ifs” in every movie production…

    • October 26, 2016 at 6:25 pm
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      If Bruce the Shark worked, then Jaws would have sucked.

      What do we learn from ‘ifs’? Nothing.

      • October 28, 2016 at 12:32 am
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        If Casablanca had 1 writer instead of the four that were constantly reworking the script, it wouldn’t have been the great american classic that it is today.

        • October 28, 2016 at 2:29 pm
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          If Coppola didn’t admonish Lucas repeatedly over the original Star Wars script, we wouldn’t be here!!!

          Noooooooo!!!!!

  • October 26, 2016 at 3:13 am
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    I have a good feeling about this…*cough cough*

  • October 26, 2016 at 4:46 am
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    I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Lord and Miller took two absolutely awful movie ideas – 21 Jump Street and The Lego Movie – and made remarkably entertaining films. I’m fully confident they can make the galaxy’s most beloved scoundrel entertaining. Plus, this may be the first all-out comedy in Star Wars history, and that’s very exciting. Solo is the ideal character for this.

  • October 26, 2016 at 4:54 am
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    I’m just here for the comments, to be honest.

  • October 26, 2016 at 4:55 am
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    Nothing has been “fine” with Star Wars since ROTJ. One disaster after the other. A Solo standalone film will just be more of the same, except worse.

    • October 26, 2016 at 5:03 am
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      Then why are you even here? Time runs in a linear fashion, meaning that literally every article from this website will about upcoming Star Wars projects which you seem to have prematurely deemed as “disasters”. Seems to me like you might be a bit of a troll.

      • October 26, 2016 at 5:30 am
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        I saw a film that warranted being bashed, so I did. Sue me.

        • October 26, 2016 at 6:28 am
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          Couldnt be more of a troll

          • October 26, 2016 at 6:34 am
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            But thankfully not a very good one – makes it easy to disregard/ignore/avoid in future. 😉

        • October 28, 2016 at 3:44 am
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          There will always be people like you, even if they did it how you wanted there would be people saying your version was all wrong.

        • November 1, 2016 at 6:22 pm
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          I feel the hate flowing through you, Join me, and together we can rule the galaxy!

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:34 pm
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      Nice try.

  • October 26, 2016 at 6:32 am
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    Re: “The standalone ideas in development came from George Lucas, the exception being Rogue One. FYI”

    I find it ironic that we have it confirmed that the standalone Han Solo film idea is direct from George Lucas and this movie idea is already being praised, yet in the Indy 5 comments section we read people expressing their absolute relief that Indy 5 ISN’T Lucas’ idea.

    Then again… the haters will be happy for this tidbit of info if Han
    Solo movie turns out bad, as they can blame Lucas solely for it, the same
    as with Crystal Skull.

    Just saying….cognitive dissonance?

    • October 26, 2016 at 8:56 am
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      It’s really weird actually. I remember back when prequel rage was taking over, I never saw a good comment about George Lucas. But now that we’re branching out into a new generation, people want him back. He’s a really good film maker, but I wish there was just a common ground people saw him on rather than saying he’s good here, but not there

      • October 26, 2016 at 10:49 pm
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        I agree with most of what you said, but to be honest I don’t agree with the last part. Common ground can be found, but EVERYBODY has hit or miss work that they’ve done. It probably has happened since the beginning of time. Look at any medium. Some people like old Beatles and not the newer stuff, Bob Dylan before and after he went electric. New and old Metallica, whatever the case may be some people change style or the substance that they do and people don’t like it. I for one happen to like the prequels well enough, TFM was rough, and they got better from there. IMO, RotS was the best of the prequels by far, but there were things in all of them I didn’t really care for and there were things in those that I adore as well.

        As a fan, I find it my job to be critical about the thing that I love, and I think it is our jobs as fans to voice our opinions. Let’s face the fact that when little Billy shows you his artwork at age 4 with his fourteen fingered Santa Claus he drew, you can encourage him for being artistic. After a certain point, if he’s still doing it, say 12 or so, maybe it’s time to take away the crayons and advise he focus his energy elsewhere.

        I thank George Lucas for everything that he did, even the prequels. Everybody has their own idea of what something should be, it just seems that George’s vision didn’t seem to line up with what many fans wanted or imagined.

  • October 26, 2016 at 8:57 am
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    I think the Han Solo movie is doing good so far. It’s being worked on by Kasdan and I think has plenty of story to make it a fun movie.

  • October 26, 2016 at 12:32 pm
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    The only real problem I see is in fact, that comedy directors will direct the movie.

    Really? The LEGO movie is brought up here as a plus?

    • October 26, 2016 at 2:29 pm
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      Well I guess it won’t be a serious movie. Some sort of space comedy featuring Han Solo and Lando. Pretty appropriate characters for that. Don’t forget that the point of this spin-off series is to explore new genres in the Star Wars universe. I think these directors are very well suited and will do a great job.

    • October 26, 2016 at 3:12 pm
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      Comedy directors also directed Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Civil War and will be doing the next two Avengers movies.

    • October 26, 2016 at 6:46 pm
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      The LEGO movie was a good film with entertaining characters, comedy or not.

      Plus, it’s an example of “an idea doomed from the start that turns out an amazing product”.

    • October 27, 2016 at 3:21 am
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      The Han Solo buddy space movie should be a comedy, Guardians of the Galaxy style.

  • October 26, 2016 at 1:50 pm
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    I wasn’t crazy about this film when it was announced, but the more I hear about it, the more cautiously optimistic about this film I become, given the talent involved. Even a film stacked with talent can be bad of course, but the odds are less likely.

    As for the point on George Lucas wanting it, that doesn’t really move the needle for me in either direction. I love Mr Lucas for giving us Star Wars, but sometimes the guy just didn’t know when to quit when it came to character origins. Case in point, the way he stripped Boba Fett of all of his mystique in the prequels.

  • October 26, 2016 at 3:15 pm
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    I was ambivalent for a very long time about this movie. Never because of someone else playing the character, that’s never mattered to me. And since it was announced this guy would be playing Han I’ve watched “Beautiful Creatures” and “Hail Caeser.” He is dynamite! He’s earnest and charismatic and interesting to watch as he plays quirky characters. And IMO he’s absolutely got what it takes to BE Han Solo.

  • October 26, 2016 at 5:19 pm
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    If Han shoots second in this movie….. (deep breath)
    …. I will be sad.

    • October 26, 2016 at 6:41 pm
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      Oh my god, what a scene THAT would be.

      Han and Lando are trying to [PLOT POINT], and go into a seedy bar to do it. Han orders a drink and gets intimidated by an alien patron, much like Luke in ANH. Unlike Luke, however, Han is naturally antagonistic and pisses the guy off. Han goes “Whatcha gonna do, big guy? Huh?” And the guy pulls his blaster, sending the whole bar into a fight and singeing Han’s shoulder. Lando pulls him out of the raging battle, and says “Alright, what did we learn today?” Han replies, “don’t pick fights with idiots?” Lando replies, “No. Always shoot first.”

  • October 26, 2016 at 6:17 pm
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    Only time will tell at this point…but, I have a bad feeling about this…

    With very low expectations on this, it could be a surprise.

  • October 26, 2016 at 8:38 pm
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    Alden was chosen by Spielburg tho I prefer the youtude guy to be Han. I think this movie will be good and definitely be fun to watch. I love every Marvel movies.
    I just hope the ship designs for this movie will be done by other group of designers than one helm by Doug Chiang. Ships in TFA and what was seen on R1 trailers looks weak…, like the U-Wing. Wtf

    • October 26, 2016 at 9:25 pm
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      I thought that about the U-Wing, but once it was revealed that U swept back to form actual wings it was kinda cool. The Tie fighters in TFA were weak I agree. 30 years of development and they look like that, and yet R1 introduce something fresh and sleek…

      • October 27, 2016 at 9:23 am
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        I really hope to like the U-Wing when we see it in action this Dec. As it is, I felt the design team under Doug Chiang is very weak. They are very talented artist, no doubt! But ship designs wise, no! They should let the KOTOR/TOR designers to work in the movies as the ships in the games are beautifully designed. That’s why I felt TFA tho did well story, character wise but the eye candies just not there anymore.

  • October 26, 2016 at 8:42 pm
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    will probably be great and i will go and see it,
    but i dont really see the need for it , all of these “star wars stories” basically solve a problem that doesnt exist , same as the prequels really , i dont need to know these things and i thought that was the retconn reason for “episode 4 5 6” , you missed 1 2 and 3 ,the battle of taanab and that bounty hunter we ran into on … etc etc
    there are supposed to be things you dont know about … well thats one of the reasons that hooked me in the first place
    “we meet again” . didnt need to know what happened the first time , you can sort of guess at it.

  • October 26, 2016 at 11:07 pm
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    It’s not the talent involved that I’m worried about. The time period this film takes place in can be used to show a very different view (the view of early Han/ Lando) of the SW galaxy.

    However, I am afraid this film will be a “checking the boxes” kinda film.
    – meeting/ rescuing Chewbacca
    – winning the Falcon
    – some Sana Solo action. (wait, now I type this, I do wanna see some Sana solo action :p )
    – Taanab
    – Kessel Run
    – dumping his freight
    – angry Jabba about losing the above freight. (if Jabba is in this movie, how much balls would the effects team have, if they use the special edition A New Hope model)
    – the mystery of the Falcon’s rearviewmirror dice
    – etc, etc

    The potential for this film is huge. Since the spin-offs were anounced, there was talk about a western in space. This could be that potential Star Wars western.
    But because of that potential, it can be the safe choice to go the above route, by having a checklist and making it to them blue end credtis.

    • October 27, 2016 at 4:23 am
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      There is literally NO WAY they will use the CGI Jabba.

      • October 27, 2016 at 12:49 pm
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        You understand I was joking about that one, right? 🙂

    • October 27, 2016 at 7:22 pm
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      yep, unfortunately…I’ve a bad feeling that this movie is going to be all about box checking.

  • October 27, 2016 at 1:18 am
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    ALDEN EHRENREICH CHOSEN TO PLAY HAN SOLO.

    What??? Nobody but Harrison Ford can be Han! This guy doesn’t look like Harrison Ford! He doesn’t sound like Harrison Ford! He only got the part because of [Steven Spielberg/Katherine Kennedy]!

    DONALD GLOVER CHOSEN TO PLAY LANDO CALRISSIAN.

    A black guy? Perfect!

    • October 27, 2016 at 3:19 am
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      Accurate.

  • October 27, 2016 at 3:18 am
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    I agree.

  • October 27, 2016 at 6:16 pm
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    I have complete confidence in Ehrenreich after seeing his work in Hail Caesar. I think he’ll be near perfect.

  • October 29, 2016 at 2:41 am
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    I’d like to know how they’ll clear up Chewie carrying Yoda on his shoulder in ‘Sith’ and Solo’s total ignorance of the Jedi and the force by the time of ANH.

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