Han Solo ‘Star Wars’ Spinoff: Alden Ehrenreich Lands Title Role, And The Internet Has Mixed Reactions
The Han Solo Star Wars spinoff has found its “scruffy looking nerf herder.” Alden Ehrenreich is set to play the title role, and he has a lot to live up to. Star Wars fans across the globe have seen Han in his glory days, know his speech patterns and body language, and generally all have a solid opinion about Ehrenreich.
As soon as the news hit, thousands if not millions of fans of the space smuggler yelled in protest, and it’s doubtful they’ve been silenced yet. Harrison Ford made the role iconic, with some help from creator George Lucas, of course, and it wasn’t likely that the public wanted to see him recast anyway. However, Harrison is a bit old to play his younger self, and Disney probably isn’t in any hurry to attempt another stunt like Tron Legacy’s digital recreation of Jeff Bridges.
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This isn’t likely the only film in which we’re going to see Han Solo in the near future, as it’s been rumored that the delay in filming for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was due to this casting decision. Apparently, there may be a cameo for the space smuggler sometime possibly before the Bothans go on their barely-successful heist to collect plans for the very first Death Star. The scene where Han meets Leia for the first time might not have been his first time dealing with rebels.
WHY IS ANYONE OTHER THAN HARRISON FORD PLAYING HAN SOLO pic.twitter.com/TDLo3lcBE6
— Ays (@smoakberry7) May 6, 2016
Han Solo may have been considered for the heist to help transport what cost the Bothans so much, but he turned them down because there wasn’t enough money in it. We all know he was promised a large reward for helping the princess, and it swayed him toward the crucial decision leading him to help Luke Skywalker finish off the space station.
I honestly don’t know why they think the audience will accept another Han Solo than Harrison Ford. Harrison IS Han and will forever be. Stop.
— #teamspidey (@AllisonArjent) May 6, 2016
Alden Ehrenreich has been in other projects before, a not-so-famous one being where he was discovered. Before he was a dopey singing cowboy in Hail Ceasar!, he had made a short film for a friend. This short film may not have gotten him anywhere by itself, but it got the attention of Steven Spielberg. Ehrenreich knew it was a throw-away role.
“It’s a piece of sh*t. It’s a video that this girl asked us to do. I mean, there wasn’t a script: We would go and just film whatever made us laugh. I’m this 14-year-old, skinny little kid with long hair. I break into her house, try on her clothes and make up a song. All of this is just us literally taking a camera and going like, ‘Okay, ha ha, do this.’ We showed it to our parents – ‘We’re gonna play this at her bat mitzvah!’ – and they were like, ‘You look like an idiot in this. I don’t think you should really do that.’ We didn’t care.”
Han Solo veteran actor Harrison Ford had said something similar to whoever took over the iconic role, but that isn’t stopping Ehrenreich from starring in the upcoming Star Wars spinoff.
Ford probably knew that the public wasn’t going to like him being recast, and the reactions were just as he likely predicted. The Han Solo Star Wars spinoff is going to be a challenge for all involved since fans of the franchise can be exacting and unforgiving. Just ask George Lucas about the prequels.
[Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images]
