han solo ron howard

Yesterday, Lucasfilm shocked the world when they announced that Phil Lord and Chris Miller would no longer be directing the still untitled Star Wars Anthology film focusing on the younger days of Han Solo. In an official statement made by studio president Kathleen Kennedy, the reason for the split was that the “vision and process” that Disney and Lucasfilm didn’t align with what the duo behind ‘The LEGO Movie’ had in mind. The shake up comes after the spinoff has been in production since February, so fans are rightfully worried about how this whole thing comes together in the end. And now as speculation begins about who should take over for Lord and Miller, it would appear that a frontrunner has already emerged for the job.

According to Deadline, Ron Howard is currently at the top of the list of filmmakers that the Mouse House is considering to helm the second stand alone ‘Star Wars’ movie starring Alden Ehrenreich as the legendary smuggler originally played by Harrison Ford alongside an all-star cast including Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover, Thandie Newton, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Joonas Suotamo. Howard is a world-renowned director and certainly a proven master of his craft, so the production would be lucky to have him. With a filmography that includes ‘The Da Vinci Code’, ‘How The Grinch Stole Christmas’, and ‘Apollo 13’, he has shown proficiency with franchise films, colorful characters (literally and figuratively), and space. If he lands this gig, we’ll see if he’ll be able to handle all of those things at once.

However, whether he wants to do it or not, the director’s schedule does come into play. The former ‘Happy Days’ star is currently working on a number of projects like a documentary on Luciano Pavarotti, an adaptation of J.D. Vance’s ‘Hillbilly Elegy’, sci-fi feature ‘Seveneves’, and an adaptation of J.P. Delaney’s romantic thriller ‘The Girl Before’. On top of all of that, he’s going to have to narrate a new season of ‘Arrested Development’ very soon. Disney and Lucasfilm will definitely have to work some kind of magic to make the stars align for this to work, but they are known to do that sort of thing from time to time. And since the film is still slated for a May 2018 release date, let’s hope that they can pull it together very soon, with or without Ron Howard.

What do you think about Ron Howard potentially directing the upcoming Han Solo movie? Do you think that someone else is better suited for the gig? And just how disappointed are you that Phil Lord and Chris Miller are no longer contributing a tale to this beloved franchise? Sound off in the comments below.