Ron Howard is officially on board the troubled \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0\u00bb Han Solo prequel, and both fans and the industry are waiting and watching to see if he’s a soldier or a savior.<\/b>
\nIt\u2019s official: Oscar-winning director Ron Howard is taking over the reins of Lucasfilm\u2019s Han Solo \u201cStar Wars\u201d spin-off. Whether that\u2019s a win for fans or the mark of a troubling turn to the dark side for the 40-year-old franchise remains to be seen.
The news comes two days after the shocking departure of \u201cLego Movie\u201d duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the irreverent helmers whose style and vision for the prequel reportedly clashed with that of the bosses up the chain \u2014 namely, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy and executive producer and screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan.
Their axing sparked a frenzy across the \u201cStar Wars\u201d galaxy Monday, given that Lord and Miller got the boot an all but unprecedented 4\u00bd months into production, with only three weeks of principal photography and scheduled reshoots left.
\u201cAt Lucasfilm, we believe the highest goal of each film is to delight, carrying forward the spirit of the saga that George Lucas began forty years ago, \u201d Kennedy said in a statement Thursday. \u201cWith that in mind, we\u2019 re thrilled to announce that Ron Howard will step in to direct the untitled Han Solo film.\u201d
There are precious few instances in Hollywood history of a director being replaced during production. It happened on two bona-fide classics (\u00ab\u00a0Gone With the Wind\u00a0\u00bb and \u00ab\u00a0The Wizard of Oz\u00a0\u00bb) , but in recent years, the results have more typically been critical and commercial flops (films such as \u00ab\u00a0Exorcist: The Beginning, \u201d \u00ab\u00a0The 13th Warrior, \u00a0\u00bb \u00ab\u00a0Rumor Has It…\u00a0\u00bb and \u00ab\u00a0The Island of Dr. Moreau\u00a0\u00bb) .
Industry watchers have been quick to point out how the Lord and Miller firing fits a pattern more indicative of corporate Hollywood moviemaking than anything else.
Under Kennedy\u2019s leadership, the \u201cStar Wars\u201d creative cabal has made a PR-boosting point to bring younger directors into the fold, indicating a desire to breathe fresh energy and new blood into the franchise. Behind the scenes, however, tumult has followed.
\u201cRogue One\u201d director Gareth Edwards was notoriously benched during reshoots on his \u201cStar Wars\u201d spin-off as word spread that Tony Gilroy had discreetly come in to finish the picture; even J. Abrams was rumored to have clashed with Lucasfilm execs over \u201c The Force Awakens \u201d before quietly distancing himself from a return to the franchise. Both movies, tightly controlled by Lucasfilm, went on to enjoy critical and commercial success in spite of behind-the-scenes chaos.
A spin-off centered on bounty hunter Boba Fett, to be directed by \u201cChronicle\u201d and \u201cFantastic Four\u201d filmmaker Josh Trank, fell apart on the eve of its planned announcement. Buzz over \u201cStar Wars: Episode IX, \u201d to be directed by Colin Trevorrow (\u201cJurassic World\u201d) , has suffered from the poor reception to his new indie film, \u201cThe Book of Henry.\u201d
\u201cKong: Skull Island\u201d director Jordan Vogt-Roberts chimed in online in defense of the improvisation that Lord and Miller reportedly had adopted on set, to the dismay of Lucasfilm execs. \u201cRead this and then remember one crucial thing: Han Solo LIKE A BOSS quipping \u2018I know\u2019 in response to Leia saying \u2018I love you\u2019 WAS IMPROVISED, \u201d he tweeted .
On the flip side, writer-director Rian Johnson (\u201cBrick, \u201d \u201cLooper\u201d) , whose \u201c Star Wars: The Last Jedi, \u201d is scheduled for a December release, tweeted: \u201cI had as much creative control on [ \u2018The Last Jedi\u2019 ] as I’ve ever had on any of my own movies.\u201d
Lord and Miller made their debut with the 2009 animated hit \u201cCloudy With a Chance of Meatballs\u201d and went on to direct \u201cThe Lego Movie, \u201d \u201c21 Jump Street\u201d and its sequel, \u201c22 Jump Street, \u201d before landing the Han Solo gig. Last year, at Star Wars Celebration Europe, Lord won the confidence of fans when he shared his take on the character of Han Solo, played by Alden Ehrenreich in the prequel.
\u201cI sort of relate to him. He doesn\u2019 t want to do anything that he\u2019s told. When told not to do something, it makes him want to do it more. [He\u2019s] very sarcastic, and at the end of the day he\u2019s unreasonably optimistic\u2026 \u201d
According to reports, Lucasfilm bosses became worried after watching dailies in which Lord and Miller strayed from the script written by Kasdan and his son Jon. Disagreements on tone, adherence to the script and the Han Solo character reportedly led to the drastic split.
Due to the amount of material already completed, it\u2019s unclear how the Directors Guild of America will handle who receives credit on the finished film. That likely won\u2019 t be answered until there\u2019s a completed cut.
Howard, 63, makes a safe, old guard choice to shepherd the vision Lucasfilm seeks for its lucrative IP when filming resumes July 10 in London. He\u2019s a solid and proven Oscar winner who starred in George Lucas\u2019 \u201cAmerican Graffiti\u201d four years before the release of \u201cStar Wars \u201d in 1977, and he hails from the same filmmaking generation as Kennedy, 64, and Kasdan, 68.
Howard revealed in 2015 on the \u201cHappy Sad\u201d podcast that Lucas approached him to direct \u201cStar Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace.\u201d \u201cHe told me he had talked to Robert Zemeckis, Steven Spielberg and me. I was the third one he spoke to. They all said the same thing: \u2018George, you should do it!\u2019 I don\u2019 t think anybody wanted to follow up that act at the time. It was an honor, but it would\u2019 ve been too daunting.\u201d
At the time, Howard said, superhero movies didn\u2019 t interest him: \u201cI was never a comic book guy. I like the movies when I see them, especially the origin stories. I never felt like I could be on the set, at 3 o\u2019 clock in the morning, tired, with 10 important decisions to make, and know, intuitively, what the story needs. For me, I\u2019 d be copycatting and not inventing. I\u2019 ve never said yes to one.\u201d
Howard is coming off of a series of underperforming domestic earners, most recently the Tom Hanks sequel \u201cInferno, \u201d which marked the fourth disappointment in a row for the \u201cBeautiful Mind\u201d Oscar winner after \u201cIn the Heart of the Sea, \u201d \u201cRush\u201d and \u201cThe Dilemma.\u201d
Regardless of the behind-the-scenes chaos, the untitled Han Solo movie, still scheduled for a May 25,2018, release, will need only to top the $260-million take of 2000’s \u00ab\u00a0How the Grinch Stole Christmas\u00a0\u00bb to become Howard’s highest-grossing film to date in the U. S. When adjusted for inflation, no \u00ab\u00a0Star Wars\u00a0\u00bb title has grossed less than $400 million domestically.
See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour \u00bb
jen.yamato@latimes.com
@jenyamato<\/p>\n

\n

Similarity rank: 15<\/div>\n

Sentiment rank: 0.1<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n