The production of ‘Solo’ – the second ‘Star Wars’ anthology film, following last year’s ‘Rogue One’ – took a turn for the interesting following the dismissal of its original directors, Phil Lord and Chris Miller. Though undeniably talented filmmakers, the pair always seemed like an odd choice for a ‘Star Wars’ movie and were ultimately ousted from the production following clashes with both Lucasfilm in general and co-writer Lawrence Kasdan specifically regarding the film’s tone and style.
Following their departure, the studio quickly brought in veteran director Ron Howard to complete production on the film. Once aboard, Howard shepherded the project through reshoots, though reports vary as to just how much of the film will ultimately be made up of his footage.
During the course of Howard’s reshoots, Paul Bettany joined the cast, replacing Michael K. Williams (as the latter’s schedule prevented him from returning for reshoots at that time). Bettany recently sat down for a conversation with Total Film, during which he described the intensity of the experience, and particularly Howard’s approach to the reshoots. And as it turns out, those reshoots proved more extensive than was originally intended:
“His staging ability is so fucking brilliant… I think he went in and he was like a laser, working out what needed to be done when he looked at the footage. And then, as things moved on, everybody felt so secure with him. And they gave him more. He reshot a lot more than was originally intended.”
The reshoots also saw at least a few conceptual adjustments, as Bettany’s character – originally envisioned as a motion capture alien – became a human.
Be sure to check back with ScienceFiction.com for more on ‘Solo’ and other upcoming ‘Star Wars’ movies as it becomes available!
‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ is currently scheduled for release on May 25, 2018. The film stars Alden Ehrenreich, Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover, Thandie Newton, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Joonas Suotamo.
