Alden Ehrenreich is the new Han Solo The search for an actor to play a young Han Solo in Disney and Lucasfilm’s upcoming Star Wars Anthology movie centered around the beloved character has come to an end, as Hail, Caesar! star Alden Ehrenreich has officially been cast.
Reports had placed Ehrenreich as a frontrunner for the part for quite some time, although Jack Reynor and Taron Egerton were both considered finalists as well. Miles Teller, Dave Franco, Ansel Elgort and Emory Cohen were all asked to audition, as early shortlists indicated.
Ehrenreich, of course, will be taking over for Harrison Ford, who has seemingly retired the character, especially after the events that unfolded in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and has enormous shoes to fill. Ford’s Solo is one of the most iconic movie characters in film history, so suffice to say, the still-untitled 2018 Han Solo spin-off will succeed or fail based on how open audiences are to welcoming in a new Solo and how well Ehrenreich portrays the character.
The events of the film take place before Han Solo makes his debut in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, and Chewbacca will be playing a key role. The Wrap even states that Solo could “cross paths with the bounty hunter known as Boba Fett,” but no other plot details are known at the time.
While Ehrenreich does appear to have the weight of the world on his shoulders, the actor showed off some serious acting chops in the aforementioned Hail, Caesar!, stealing the spotlight from a slew of Hollywood’s biggest stars, including Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson and more.
The actor’s other credits include Stoker, Beautiful Creatures and Blue Jasmine; he can be seen in The Yellow Birds and an untitled Warren Beatty-directed film later this year.
As of now, Ehrenreich is the only actor on board the project, but expect many more casting announcements to come soon, considering that a recent tweet from co-director of the film Christopher Miller seems to suggest that shooting isn’t far, far away. See the tweet below:
Can't wait to get "shooting"!#MayThe4thBeWithYou pic.twitter.com/HlteYut6m0
— Christopher Miller (@chrizmillr) May 4, 2016
Phil Lord will be directing the film alongside Christopher Miller, the same duo that helmed such hit films as 21 Jump Street and The Lego Movie. For the most part, viewers have not been let down by a Lord and Miller project yet, so hopefully the Han Solo spin-off is no exception.
Writing the project is father-son team Lawrence and Jon Kasdan; the former has been penning Star Wars movies for over three and a half decades, starting with Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back in 1980. He also worked on The Force Awakens with J.J. Abrams and Michael Arndt.
The untitled Han Solo Star Wars Anthology film will hit theaters on May 25, 2018.
