Earlier this week, major news broke regarding the Han Solo spin-off movie. With only three weeks of filming left to be done, the directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, left the project following “creative differences”. Now, you may wonder why they would walk away from a Star Wars movie, especially after dedicating a number of months to it. Well, they were reportedly fired.
According to sources who spoke to Variety, the two directors clashed with Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and Star Wars writer Lawerence Kasden (writer of The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, and The Force Awakens) which lead to a very “polarizing set”.
Today, Lucasfilm announced they have brought on a new director, friend of George Lucas and Academy Award-winning director Ron Howard. The mind behind films such as Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, and much more. He was even approached by George Lucas to direct Star Wars: The Phantom Menace prior to its release.
“At Lucasfilm, we believe the highest goal of each film is to delight, carrying forward the spirit of the saga that George Lucas began 40 years ago,” said Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm, 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.”
Sources have told The Hollywood Reporter that Howard will meet with the actors to “soothe the rattled set” and he will then view a rough cut of the film to find out what is left for him to accomplish. The movie will resume shooting on July 10th.
