Although most Star Wars fans will never see anyone but Harrison Ford in the role of Han Solo, Disney still hopes to cast an actor as a young version of the character for a new Star Wars spin-off film.
Variety reports that a shortlist has emerged of actors that Disney and Lucasfilm have in mind for Han Solo for the untitled project. Although none of them are actually Ford — because the new movie focuses on a young Han — the company feels that one of these actors is up to the task of becoming Chewbacca's new best friend.
According to Variety, Disney and Lucasfilm looked at thousands of actors and eventually cut the list down to the following: Miles Teller (Divergent, Whiplash), Ansel Elgort (The Fault in our Stars, Insurgent), Dave Franco (21 Jump Street, Warm Bodies), Jack Reynor (Transformers: Age of Extinction), Scott Eastwood (Gran Torino, Texas Chainsaw 3D), Logan Lerman (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief), Emory Cohen (Brooklyn, Smash) and Blake Jenner (Glee, Everybody Wants Some).
Many of these actors are fairly young, with the oldest being Eastwood at 29 years old. If he has any of his father's swagger, though — his father is actor Clint Eastwood — he might turn out the best fit for Han. In comparison, Ford was 35 years old when the first Star Wars film premiered in 1977.
Meanwhile, don't expect any of these shortlisted actors to talk about what's going on with casting: they will all sign NDAs before Disney and Lucasfilm work out test deals. However, the film's producer, Kathleen Kennedy, and directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller hope to have a final decision within a few weeks.
Shooting won't begin on the Han Solo movie until 2017, but it's possible that a young Han Solo will appear in Star Wars: Rogue One, which is still shooting. Because the events in Rogue One occur between Episode III and Episode IV, a young Han Solo would fit into the movie's time period.
Disney and Lucasfilm hope to release the Han Solo movie on May 25, 2018. However, will Star Wars fans pay to see someone besides Ford play the role? I guess we'll have an answer in a few years.
