Donald Glover is officially a young Lando Calrissian!
Lucasfilm announced today that Donald Glover, an acclaimed actor, award-winning writer, and Grammy-nominated artist, will be playing the part of Lando Calrissian in the still-untitled Han Solo Star Wars film, helmed by directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. Glover will join Alden Ehrenreich — previously cast as Han Solo — in bringing two iconic Star Wars characters back to the big screen, but at a time in their lives previously unexplored. This new film depicts Lando in his formative years as a scoundrel on the rise in the galaxy’s underworld — years before the events involving Han, Leia, and Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back and his rise to Rebel hero in Return of the Jedi.
“We’re so lucky to have an artist as talented as Donald join us,” said Lord and Miller. “These are big shoes to fill, and an even bigger cape, and this one fits him perfectly, which will save us money on alterations. Also, we’d like to publicly apologize to Donald for ruining Comic-Con for him forever.”
Glover is best known for creating and starring in the critically acclaimed FX series Atlanta (which had the highest premiere numbers for any basic cable comedy show since 2013), as well as for starring in four seasons of the show Community, and for his Grammy-nominated album Because the Internet, performed under the name Childish Gambino. In addition, Glover appeared in the Academy Award-nominated The Martian, and will be seen in the upcoming Spider-Man: Homecoming.
The untitled Han Solo movie is set for release in 2018.
Originally Posted by Deberg_1990:
I'm curious if Howard will film a whole new movie or just add bits and pieces??
5 weeks of reshoots had already been planned, with 4 weeks of principle photography on the schedule, which is set to begin July 10th.
So basically, they have two weeks with Ron in which to decide what will be kept and what will be reshot and I'm sure Iger will weigh in as well. That said, they have far more time for reshoots, editing and score than Rogue One did at about this time last year (which 40% of the film was reshot or new), so if they want to scrap everything and start over, they can do it.
I still think the May 2018 deadline is in jeopardy but more importantly, doesn't even really make sense, IMO. Lucasfilm has killed it the last two holiday seasons and VIII is sure to replicate that success. Why release another Star Wars film less than 2 months after VIII leaves the theaters?
How the Han Solo film broke apart - with Ron Howard picking up the pieces.
Move comes just after directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller were fired.
Ron Howard is now steering the Millennium Falcon.
A little over a day after the directors of the upcoming Han Solo movie were fired, Lucasfilm has turned to the veteran filmmaker to steer the troubled Star Wars project home. “At Lucasfilm, we believe the highest goal of each film is to delight, carrying forward the spirit of the saga that George Lucas began forty years ago,” Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said in a statement. “With that in mind, we’re thrilled to announce that Ron Howard will step in to direct the untitled Han Solo film. We have a wonderful script, an incredible cast and crew, and the absolute commitment to make a great movie. Filming will resume the 10th of July.”
Howard previously worked with Lucasfilm when he directed the 1988 fantasy adventure Willow, with Warwick Davis, Val Kilmer, and Joanne Whalley. And the A Beautiful Mind Oscar-winner also served as an unofficial advisor to George Lucas on his prequel films, having been a longtime friend ever since co-starring in Lucas’s coming-of-age classic American Graffiti in 1973. Brace yourself for a wave of “Help us, Opie-Wan Kenobi, you’re our only hope” headlines.
The Star Wars stand-alone project, starring Alden Ehrenreich in the role originated by Harrison Ford, was just weeks away from ending principal photography when directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, best known for The LEGO Movie, were dropped from the film Monday — with Lucasfilm and the filmmakers both citing “creative differences.” The question remained for Star Wars fans: What exactly were those differences, and why were they so insurmountable that neither side was willing to compromise to avoid this public upheaval?
Here’s what we know now — several sources close to the movie and others close to the directors tell EW that ever since filming began back in February, Lord and Miller, who are known primarily for wry, self-referential comedies like 21 Jump Street and the pilot episodes for Brooklyn 99 and Last Man on Earth, began steering the Han Solo movie more into the genre of comedy than space fantasy. Apparently, the split was subtle one that became magnified over time: Lucasfilm and producer Kennedy believed Lord and Miller were hired to add a comedic touch; Lord and Miller believed they were hired to make a comedy.
It’s an ironic turn. Last year, when Rogue One was undergoing reshoots, fans were critical because they assumed Lucasfilm was trying to “lighten” the war story with more comedy. Those concerns were unfounded, but now the opposite is the case for the Han Solo film: Lucasfilm wants young Han Solo to be more grounded. With comedically gifted actors like Atlanta‘s Donald Glover in the role of Lando Calrissian and Fleabag‘s Phoebe Waller-Bridge as an unspecified motion-capture character (in galactic terms, that usually signals a droid or alien), Lord and Miller began straying from the script by Star Wars veteran Lawrence Kasdan and his son, Jon Kasdan (The First Time.)
One source close to the fired directors says: “They thought they were brought on to make a Phil and Chris movie… Sometimes they just thought the actors could do it differently.” But others on the project say they pushed to far. It wasn’t just a question of tone. The variations added up to significantly change the story. They may have been brought aboard to give young Han Solo a wiseass vibe, an irreverent style, but Lucasfilm still felt the directors had a responsibility to tell the story as written.
When dailies began rolling in featuring improvisation from the actors and new ideas from the directors that significantly parted ways with the script, the relationship with the home office at Lucasfilm became fraught. As principal photography for the movie approached its end, it became clear that the filmmakers and producers did not share the same vision for some critical scenes. Reshoots were always possible (they are factored into almost every major film these days, and each new Star Wars project has undergone them), but as Lord and Miller dug in, refusing to compromise on what they saw as the best course for the film, the partnership went from fraught to fractured. If they wouldn’t do the scenes as Lucasfilm and Kennedy wanted them now, why would they do them that way during reshoots?
Sources close to the studio tell EW that Kennedy also wanted what was best for the film. Those perspectives were just different — and growing further apart. After relaunching the franchise, which had taken devastating damage from the critical reception to the Star Wars prequels, and building not just an acclaimed new saga with The Force Awakens but kicking off a series of stand-alones with Rogue One, Kennedy felt she had earned her galactic bona fides: the directors should give her the benefit of the doubt and follow her concept of what the Star Wars movie should be.
Lord and Miller are well-liked within the industry and have a style that has often led studios to compete for their attentions, but Kennedy, whose long history of credits include Back to the Future, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and Jurassic Park, also has an immense, proven track record. Backing her was Kasdan, Star Wars royalty — the screenwriter of The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. They became immovable objects. If the filmmakers were refusing to make the movie Lucasfilm expected, why continue? On Monday, Lord and Miller were told they were terminated. The production was put on hold.
Howard’s name began circulating immediately, but yesterday his agency, CAA, was still saying a deal hadn’t been reached. This morning, it was done. He will have two weeks to get to England and get up to speed on where things are, where they went awry from the studio’s point of view, and come up with a plan to complete it — if not on time, then with minimal extension to the schedule. Meanwhile, Lord and Miller begin packing up and heading home. Reps for the directors declined to say whether they might return Warner Bros.’ big-screen version of the DC Comics superhero The Flash, which they had left to take on the Han Solo movie. But since they were fired over a difference of vision, rather than an out-of-control production, they aren't expected to take a massive career hit.
A source close to them said they wouldn’t have bad blood toward Howard. “Somebody has to take over the movie.” Some close to the pair say Lord and Miller see the Han Solo film like a romantic break-up. It’s the end of an unhappy relationship, something they once deeply cared about, even if there is no future together.
Originally Posted by Deberg_1990:
I have always loved Willow and most of Ron Howard's output. Especially his 80s and 90s stuff. I think he will be fine.
He's a "safe" choice, for sure.
KK seems hell bent on getting these movies "right", so it'll be interesting to see what happens with Trevorrow's script and direction, considering The Book of Henry is getting absolutely slaughtered by critics and the box office. [Reply]
While I've really enjoyed several of Howard's films, Willow certainly wasn't one of them. I'll never understand the love for that piece of crap. It was a lame, shameless Star Wars ripoff. Lucas should have sued himself for writing it. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Frazod:
While I've really enjoyed several of Howard's films, Willow certainly wasn't one of them. I'll never understand the love for that piece of crap. It was a lame, shameless Star Wars ripoff. Lucas should have sued himself for writing it.
Not sure how you are equating Willow to a Star Wars ripoff??? [Reply]
Originally Posted by Frazod:
While I've really enjoyed several of Howard's films, Willow certainly wasn't one of them. I'll never understand the love for that piece of crap. It was a lame, shameless Star Wars ripoff. Lucas should have sued himself for writing it.
I always knew it was a ripoff of Star Wars, but still liked it.
I can definitely see the leaks now, but it's still entertaining. A lot of Howard's stuff hit me t just the right moment I guess. Cocoon, Parenthood, Backdraft, Night Shift, Splash, Etc. great stuff. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Deberg_1990:
I always knew it was a ripoff of Star Wars, but still liked it.
I can definitely see the leaks now, but it's still entertaining. A lot of Howard's stuff hit me t just the right moment I guess. Cocoon, Parenthood, Backdraft, Night Shift, Splash, Etc. great stuff.
Perhaps if I'd been a bit younger when I first saw it I would have liked it more. But I wasn't. [Reply]
