# Han Solo prequel planned **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 8, 2015, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607 "2015-07-08T19:20:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/141 "2018-04-05T16:32:30Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Except rom-com. Come on, man. Oh, [it’s coming](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=j_5KgpN38hM). Stranger ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/142 "2018-04-05T17:10:07Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Nah, you’re describing the MCU. _Star Wars_ has long been about fan service and selling merchandise ever since the first Ewok appeared on screen. The MCU hasnt been about Fan service and selling merchandise? Have you\* seen \*the Marvel merchandise? ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/143 "2018-04-05T17:24:47Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > The MCU hasnt been about Fan service and selling merchandise? Have you\* seen \*the Marvel merchandise? Oh, sure, they make crazy bank on merchandise, and they’re not above tossing in [some occasional fan service](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_Y8MEAUPlZk) that is not relevent to the story, but it is generally pretty artfully done and at the end of the day they are telling great stories and expanding their narrative universe rather than just filling in the blanks. The biggest problem with Marvel in a narrative sense is trying to leverage in plot hooks for future films in a non-organic way, e.g. tossing Spider-Man into the _Civil War_ airfield fight or much of _Age of Ultron_. But they’re willing to take big risks on fronting minor characters and giving offbeat directors enough rope to make the movies individually distinct and original. I couldn’t see anyone letting James Gunn work within the _Star Wars_ universe because the first thing he would do is blow it up. I’m kind of surprised they gave Rian Johnson as much free reign to essentially gut J.J. Abrams collection of stupid “mystery boxes” from _The Force Awakens_, and I look forward to his helming of the subsequent trilogy, but crafting some kind of self-consistent universe with individual and unconnected stories has never been in the development strategy for the _Star Wars_ film universe. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/144 "2018-04-05T17:36:30Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Nah, you’re describing the MCU. _Star Wars_ has long been about fan service and selling merchandise ever since the first Ewok appeared on screen. > > Stranger Seriously, I don’t get your point. You keep bringing this up. Are you saying MCU cares primarily about the story and Star Wars only cares about selling merch? Because I see it as pretty much the opposite. There are really good stories coming out of the Star Wars universe. And I find I largely forget the plot of most marvel movies two minutes after walking out of the theater ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/145 "2018-04-05T18:07:15Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Oh, [it’s coming](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=j_5KgpN38hM). > > Stranger Bwahahahahaha! ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/146 "2018-04-05T18:19:42Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Alrighty; I honestly can’t tell if you’re disagreeing with me, agreeing with me, or just happen to be quoting me while offering your own thoughts on things. > > I still think they could do worse things than give a scene or two in the movie to Harrison Ford considering he’s the guy who owned the character for 40+ years, and this movie has been getting what could be described, at best, lackluster press. The buzz created by having old man Han in it might off-set the year-plus of “This is gonna suck” comments. And if anyone could convince Ford to pull on his Han Solo pants one last time, it might be Ron Howard. > > You’re right, the purpose of the movie is to make money. Why wouldn’t having Harrison Ford in it help do that? The only reason Harrison Ford agreed to do The Force Awakens is because they promised to kill him. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/147 "2018-04-05T18:21:24Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Seriously, I don’t get your point. You keep bringing this up. Are you saying MCU cares primarily about the story and Star Wars only cares about selling merch? Because I see it as pretty much the opposite. There are really good stories coming out of the Star Wars universe. And I find I largely forget the plot of most marvel movies two minutes after walking out of the theater We may have to agree to disagree on this point but while I appreciated _The Force Awakens_ for actually looking and sounding like a _Star Wars_ movie rather than a festival of even-for-the-day-mediocre CGI of the prequel films, the actual plotting and characterization was weak and basically pandering to nostalgia of the original films. That the film succeeded in being as entertaining as it was was almost entirely due to the performances of Daisy Ridley and John Bodega, and had essentially nothing to do with Harrison Ford’s extended cameo which seemed to exist largely to satisfy Ford’s long-stated desire to finally kill off Han Solo once and for all. Kylo Ren was a ludicrous replacement for Darth Vader, and after all the noise made about Captain Phasma and her shiny armor they basically mooked her and dumped her down a trash chute without any ceremony or significance. _The Last Jedi_ at least went in some unexpected directions (although if you take the 20 kft view it is basically following the same structure as _The Empire Strikes Back_ in making it a “road movie” where the main characters get seperated and the hero/ine is tempted by a deal to compromise principles in order to save friends. Although it had some memorable moments, particularly the hyperdive killshot scene and the ground assault scene that stand up to the best cinematic images from the original trilogy, the story wasn’t anything special, and the characters repeatedly did things that mad no sense strictly in order to create plot complications. It certainly isn’t strongly tied into the other stories and in fact the entire overarching theme of the film is essentially leaving the past behind and starting anew, which was delivered with some very unsubtle subtextg. The MCU, on the other hand, has let individual films go in very different directions and intentionally reference different genres such as techno-conspiracy, Shakespearian tragedy, team of misfit rogue worldsavers, political conspiracy, space opera, heist, psychological triller, scienc-y high fantasy. If you “largely forget the plot of most marvel movies two minutes after walking out of the theater” it’s probably because you aren’t paying much attention, because while there are definitely some weak films in the MCU (_Incredible Hulk_, _Iron Man 2_, _Thor: The Dark World_) most of the films are quite distinct both visually and in many plot elements, even when the essential plots follow a standard template. (Yes, _Iron Man_ and _Ant-Man_ are basically the same movie from a plotting standpoint down to the same bald-headed villain taking over the hero’s company and trying to steal his technology, but one has Robert Downey, Jr. [flying past Santa Monica Pier and nearly killing himself while testing out his new suit](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwOxM0-byvc), and the other has [Paul Rudd trying to get Michael Pena to just tell him the facts](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj2u_obs3n0).) If you can’t remember the difference between those two films, you are probably wasting your time and money to see movies that just don’t interest you. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/148 "2018-04-05T18:28:10Z")
On the other hand, _Rogue One_ was a very different sort of story from the others, and might be a sign that they actually are planning on branching out into different genres and styles. And there’s also a lot of variety in the Expanded Universe, especially the games. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/149 "2018-04-05T18:59:33Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > On the other hand, _Rogue One_ was a very different sort of story from the others, and might be a sign that they actually are planning on branching out into different genres and styles. And there’s also a lot of variety in the Expanded Universe, especially the games. And Rebels and The Clone Wars and novels… There’s just a lot more to Star Wars than the Episodes, but it seems that’s all SoaT is considering in his critique. > [@](#): > > If you can’t remember the difference between those two films, you are probably wasting your time and money to see movies that just don’t interest you. Golly thanks mister! But I enjoy the MCU movies for what they are: Mindless escapes with big explosions and fights and humor and whatnot. But I’d still have a hard time recounting the plot of any of them at this point. (And I’m apparently not the only one who finds them somewhat forgettable: “[What makes Marvel movies so forgettable?](https://www.neogaf.com/threads/what-makes-marvel-movies-so-forgettable.1419410/)” “[Why is the Marvel Cinema Universe so drab?](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/mar/22/why-is-the-marvel-cinema-universe-so-drab)” “[He’s like a superhero, but his power is you can’t remember him no matter how much time you spend with him. Kind of like every Marvel movie ever.](http://comicbook.com/2016/11/25/gilmore-girls-a-year-in-the-life-pokes-fun-at-dc-marvel-films/)” And who really cares? Glad you like them so much. Just don’t think you’ve got some absoulte truth about the MCU being so much better and creative than the SWU. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/150 "2018-04-05T19:41:18Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > There’s just a lot more to Star Wars than the Episodes, but it seems that’s all SoaT is considering in his critique. Yes, I’m only considering the films because we are talking about films. If we were talking about extended universes and animated TV shows, Marvel is all over the map. > [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Golly thanks mister! But I enjoy the MCU movies for what they are: Mindless escapes with big explosions and fights and humor and whatnot. But I’d still have a hard time recounting the plot of any of them at this point. (And I’m apparently not the only one who finds them somewhat forgettable: “[What makes Marvel movies so forgettable?](https://www.neogaf.com/threads/what-makes-marvel-movies-so-forgettable.1419410/)” “[Why is the Marvel Cinema Universe so drab?](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/mar/22/why-is-the-marvel-cinema-universe-so-drab)” “[He’s like a superhero, but his power is you can’t remember him no matter how much time you spend with him. Kind of like every Marvel movie ever.](http://comicbook.com/2016/11/25/gilmore-girls-a-year-in-the-life-pokes-fun-at-dc-marvel-films/)” And who really cares? Glad you like them so much. Just don’t think you’ve got some absoulte truth about the MCU being so much better and creative than the SWU. ”Well, that’s just like, your opinion, man.” No need to take it personally; I’m not trying to attack you or suggest that your tastes are wrong, and there are certainly many people who think that the _Star Wars_ films are the best movies ever made. But I think it is pretty clear that the _Star Wars_ films are pretty formulaic and that the recipe for success that Lucasfilm has followed has been to pull on nostalgia strings and to include elements specifically designed to market toys like the Ewoks, porgs, or BB-8, which (at least in the original trilogy of films) actually made Lucas more money than revenues from the films themselves. Lucasfilm/Disney has yet to show an indication that they intend to create wholly original stories or characters not related to the existing stories, although I suspect if they retain Rian Johnson as the creative force behind the next projected trilogy he’ll probably challenge that. But getting back to the original point of discussion, bringing in Harrison Ford to do a wave-and-nod cameo isn’t going to do anything to fix fundamental problems with the _Solo_ film if they exist, and would only invite unfavorable comparisons to the new actor even if Ford were willing to do the role again which given his history seems unlikely. It certainly doesn’t bring anything novel to a film that if it needs to exist for any other reason than make money from nostalgic fans hoping for the “old magic” (sorry for the _Blade Runner_ reference, I couldn’t help myself) needs to be about far more than Solo winning the _Millenium Falcon_ or doing the Kessel Run. In fact, if the filmmakers really wanted to be coy, they’d make some toss off reference to the Kessel Run about how Solo can’t actually count correctly and move right on past. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/151 "2018-04-05T19:48:33Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > No need to take it personally; Not taking a personally. I just love it when people come into threads about a certain TV show or movie and proceed to tell us how another TV show or movie is so much better than the one being discussed. That was sarcasm. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/152 "2018-04-05T19:59:17Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > On the other hand, _Rogue One_ was a very different sort of story from the others, and might be a sign that they actually are planning on branching out into different genres and styles. And there’s also a lot of variety in the Expanded Universe, especially the games. Well of course they have to plan to branch out into different genres, timelines, _Rosencranz and Guldenstern Are Dead_ type character stories and such…because the original _Star Wars_ movies are going to run out of plotline gas _checks watch_ in exactly _one movie._ 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/153 "2018-04-05T20:24:44Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > …It certainly doesn’t bring anything novel to a film that if it needs to exist for any other reason than make money from nostalgic fans hoping for the “old magic” (sorry for the _Blade Runner_ reference, I couldn’t help myself)… Hmm. You know, that Deckard fella _did_ look an awful lot like Han Solo… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/154 "2018-04-05T20:36:11Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Here’s what I wouldn’t mind seeing: Movie opens on the Millenium Falcon in hyperspace, with Chewie at the helm. Han is telling whoppers to Rey and Finn while they’re on their way to Takodana to see Maz, and he tells them a doozy about how he first came into possession of the old rust bucket from Lando. And that frames the movie; everything we see is Han’s version of history. With Han as an unreliable narrator, it could open it up to some real fun badassery. Ironically enough, that framing technique was used in Lucas’s “[The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103586/?ref_=tt_ov_inf)” TV series in the early '90s. The bookending was usually done with [George Hall](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0355598/) playing a 93-year-old Dr. Jones, but [in one episode](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108635/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_i41), it was Ford himself in the bookend scenes, playing Jones at age 50. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/155 "2018-04-05T20:59:19Z")
I wonder if they’ll try to work [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arSvw1EVTGQ) into the story. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/156 "2018-04-06T05:00:40Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > The MCU, on the other hand, has let individual films go in very different directions… How is this about the **Han Solo Prequel**? Yeah, you like Marvel, that’s nice, why not start a thread about how _marvel_ous their films are. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/157 "2018-04-06T05:17:25Z")
If they were going to do any bookending, I think using Han would be a little confusing for casual audiences, as we’ve already see the character die. More likely they would do it with Lando/Billy Dee Williams. But having said that, it would invite too close a scrutiny for comparison to the young actors, whose voices and performances are not going to be a match, so I am absolutely certain they aren’t going to do that. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/158 "2018-04-06T06:17:51Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > How is this about the **Han Solo Prequel**? Yeah, you like Marvel, that’s nice, why not start a thread about how _marvel_ous their films are. :rolleyes: It was an offhand comment that _someone_ decided to turn into a major issue. Regardless, there appears to be little necessity for a film that appears to be based on a throwaway line intended to be casual character backstory in a film no one at the time expected to turn into a major franchise. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/159 "2018-04-06T06:59:52Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > It was an offhand comment that _someone_ decided to turn into a major issue. Regardless, there appears to be little necessity for a film that appears to be based on a throwaway line intended to be casual character backstory in a film no one at the time expected to turn into a major franchise. > > Stranger I assume you mean me, but once again you can’t just be clear with your digs. And come on dude, you’re the one who decided to bring up how SWU just wasn’t doing the absolutely remarkable and tremendously artistic things MCU is. :rolleyes: But seriously, you obviously have issues with the SWU and this movie. Why do you keep coming back to this thread to mention how much of a waste of time this movie is going to be? And to tout MCU over SWU, no less? What does MCU have fuck-all to do with the SWU? Its wonderful you’ve found something so Shakespearean and deep and meaningful for you in the world of comic book cinema. Maybe you should just skip Solo, as it doesn’t seem like it’ll come anywhere close to your high standards in make-believe movies. But whatever, I’m done with this, and I apologize that it’s take up so much real estate here. And I say all this knowing Solo could very well suck donkey nuts and be a bigger embarrassment than Jar-Jar Binks sharing screen space with Jake Lloyd. But I hold out hope and want to actually discuss the movie because I actually like the SWU right now. > [@](#): > > If they were going to do any bookending, I think using Han would be a little confusing for casual audiences, as we’ve already see the character die. More likely they would do it with Lando/Billy Dee Williams. > > But having said that, it would invite too close a scrutiny for comparison to the young actors, whose voices and performances are not going to be a match, so I am absolutely certain they aren’t going to do that. Yeah, I don’t know that the big “thing” will be Harrison Ford, now that I think more about it, but I can’t help but think there’ll be some big moment to come out of it (like Han getting gutted by Kylo Ren, or Vader slicing and dicing rebel troops). My initial thought was the water-cooler moment would be Harrison Ford showing up somehow, but maybe it’s Billy Dee. Or maybe it’s something else. But I can’t imagine this movie comes and goes without some “fuck yeah/holy shit” thing, especially since it’s likely a one-off type story, and I trust that Ron Howard gets that there needs to be _something_ to make this movie somehow meaningful. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2018, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607/160 "2018-04-09T01:19:59Z")
New trailer out: [spoiler]I hope Chewie makes it![/spoiler] [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/han-solo-prequel-planned/724607.md?page=9)