It’s disheartening that Lucasfilm didn’t have faith in its Han Solo standalone directors. But it’s downright scary that Lucasfilm was worried about Alden Ehrenreich’s performance as the iconic smuggler.
Hollywood was rocked last week when news broke that Kathleen Kennedy, President of Lucasfilm, opted to fire Chris Miller and Phil Lord. The two were co-directing Han Solo’s standalone film – which is still untitled – and were scheduled to wrap filming in July.
Now, with Ron Howard arriving in London today to take over, the schedule has been extended to early September. Before letting the panic set in, let’s note that, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Miller and Lord got “very usable footage.” Lucasfilm just wanted more. So, for the most part, the film is still on track.
The real worry should come from the news that Lucasfilm brought in an acting coach for Alden Ehrenreich, according to THR.
From the get-go, fans were concerned over his casting – the most blatant critique being his looks. Ehrenreich is currently 27 years old. When Harrison Ford first became Han Solo, he was 35 years old. It’s unclear how old Han is supposed to be in this film, but even in the movie world the difference in actors will be a stretch.
Of course, looks aren’t the most important part. But if Alden doesn’t look the part, he should at least be able to act the part.
Now, it is entirely possible that Alden is doing fine, and Lucasfilm simply brought in the coach to be extra thorough. After all, the little things really matter in the Star Wars universe. As THR went on to point out, “hiring a coach is not unusual.”
But then they added, “hiring one that late in production is.”
Next: Yes, Ron Howard is taking over Han Solo's standalone
At this point there seems to be an equal chance of Alden pulling it off as Alden dropping the ball. But as our smuggler would say, “Never tell me the odds.”