Not long ago in a galaxy nearby, Disney bought Star Wars and announced it would be releasing new installments in the Star Wars series. Some of these new films would continue the Skywalker saga while others would be Star Wars stories. The idea behind these Star Wars stories was to explore some of the stories that were briefly hinted at in the previously released films. Rogue One, was the first of the Star Wars stories. While Rogue One explored a relatively unknown period in the Star Wars saga, it featured very few known characters. This will all change once Solo: A Star Wars Story hits theatres this May.
The first trailer for Solo: A Star Wars Story introduces Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) during his younger years as a smuggler. As we know from Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, his younger years were spent alongside Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover) but we don’t know much about the other smugglers Solo crossed paths with. It’ll be fun to see what Solo’s early career was like and how he was shaped by characters like Tobias Beckett (Woody Harrelson) and Val (Thandie Newton).
Like Rogue One, Solo was not without its behind-the-scenes drama. The original directors were fired after disagreements with the studio about the tone of the film, in both cases seasoned directors were brought in to handle reshoots. In the case of Rogue One everything worked out and the film ended up making over a billion dollars worldwide.
Han Solo is one of the most beloved Star Wars characters, so it makes sense Disney decided to explore his backstory in their second Star Wars story. There has been much speculation about which character will be next, will it be Jabba the Hutt? Obi Wan Kenobi? or perhaps Boba Fett? We’ll have to wait and see.
Solo: A Star Wars Story is directed by Ron Howard and stars Alden Ehrenreich, Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover, Paul Bettany and Thandie Newton. It will be released in the U.K. and the U.S. on May 25th, 2018. For international release dates click here.
Are you excited about the Star Wars anthology films? Let us know in the comments!
Does content like this matter to you?
Become a Member and support film journalism. Unlock access to all of Film Inquiry`s great articles. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about cinema - get access to our private members Network, give back to independent filmmakers, and more.