Han Solo ‘Star Wars’ Spinoff Loses Directors, Film Will Not be Pushed Back

Lawrence Yee
Star Wars
Star Wars

The Han Solo Star Wars spin-off hit a major obstacle today with directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller leaving the project over “creative differences.”

“Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are talented filmmakers who have assembled an incredible cast and crew, but it’s become clear that we had different creative visions on this film, and we’ve decided to part ways. A new director will be announced soon,” Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy wrote in a statement on Tuesday.

“Unfortunately, our vision and process weren’t aligned with our partners on this project. We normally aren’t fans of the phrase ‘creative differences’ but for once this cliché is true. We are really proud of the amazing and world-class work of our cast and crew,” Lord and Miller added.

Production on the spinoff — which stars Alden Ehrenreich as the charismatic smuggler originated by Harrison Ford — was already underway.

Release Date Unchanged

Despite the upheaval, the studio said the film’s May 25, 2018 release date would not be pushed back.

The latest Star Wars films have all had different directors. 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens was helmed by veteran sci-fi director J.J. Abrams. Rian Johnson took the reins on this December’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi while Colin Trevorrow has been tapped for the yet untitled Star Wars: Episode IX. 2016’s standalone film — Rogue One: A Star Wars Story — was helmed by Gareth Edwards.

It’s unknown if one of these four will take over the Han Solo project, as they’re already familiar with the Star Wars universe, or if another franchise newcomer will come on board.

The cast for the yet untitled Han Solo movie includes Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian and Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke as the female lead. Woody Harrelson and Thandie Newton costar.

Lawrence Yee
Lawrence is Editor in Chief of FANDOM. He grew up loving X-Men, Transformers, and Japanese-style role playing games like Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy. First-person shooters make him incredibly nauseous.