Since Disney announced that they were getting back into the Star Wars business, speculation about exactly what form the new films will take, and who will be involved in them, has run rampant. Last month JJ Abrams signed on as director of Episode VII, and today there’s news that will likely prove just as divisive. According to Latino Review, Harrison Ford will reprise his role as Han Solo in Episode VII. So far, Disney hasn’t confirmed the report, but in the interview with Fox News Latino where he broke the news, the Latino Review’s “El Mayimbe” insisted that he triple-checked his intel before breaking the story.
As always, Hollywood news needs to be taken with a grain of salt, but Latino Review has a pretty good track record with this kind of scoops. They previously broke the news that Guardians of the Galaxy will be the second Marvel movie coming out in 2014—which has since been confirmed by Marvel—and other news sources regularly pick up their stories. Not to mention the fact that this move seems perfectly in keeping with Hollywood’s penchant for exploiting childhood memories to sell tickets.
Since Ford is more than 30 years older than he was when he last played the role (he’s now 70), this news seems to support the idea that the new trilogy will leap forward to focus on Han and Leia’s children. If Abrams and writer Michael Arndt draw their characters from the so-called Expanded Universe of the books, video games, and TV series, that will most likely be twins Jaina and Jacen, both of whom become Jedis.
Even if El Mayimbe proves wrong, what is certain is that—for better or worse—we have many more casting and plot rumors to look forward to between now and the movie’s release in 2015.
Previously
J.J. Abrams Will Direct the New Star Wars Movie
How the Empire Lost the Battle of Hoth
Did You See This? Dancing Han Solo
