“Solo: A Star Wars Story,” is only a few weeks away from release. It's been quite the journey, to say the least. Controversies and rumours were abound during production, but that seems to have stalled a bit in recent months and Disney was, more or less, back in cruise control, especially after the success of the Super Bowl teaser and trailer release. Hell, it was even revealed this weekend that fired directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller were going to receive executive producer credit on the film. Aw, shucks.
However, a new bombshell has emerged today with the publication of a new report courtesy of Vulture. This from an anonymous actor. If you are like myself and live for the gossip that happens on movie productions then you should read on
This new report from Vulture says the actor “declined to be identified because he is not authorized to publicly discuss the movie at this time.”
The question we all want to know is why Lord and Miller were fired, this is what the anonymous source had to say about that:
“Phil and Chris are good directors, but they weren’t prepared for ‘Star Wars.’ After the 25th take, the actors are looking at each other like, ‘This is getting weird.’ [Lord and Miller] seemed a bit out of control. They definitely felt the pressure; with one of these movies, there are so many people on top of you all the time. The first assistant director was really experienced and had to step in to help them direct a lot of scenes.”
A spokesperson for Lord and Miller quickly released a statement saying this information was “completely inaccurate.”
How did the cast react when Lord and Miller were fired?
“It was crazy,” the anonymous actor said. “They fired our bosses. Everyone was texting each other: ‘Did you see the news? Do you think they’re doing reshoots?’ It was messy. And it was crazy how everything got leaked to the press.”
The source goes on to say that Ron Howard quickly steered the ship in the right direction:
“When he came on, he took control and you could feel it. He got respect immediately. He’s really confident. A really easy guy to work with.”
So what's the difference between Howard's version of Solo and Lord/Miller's?
“It’s exactly the same script. They’re filming exactly the same things. There’s nothing new,” says the actor. “[Lord and Miller] used whole sets. But Ron is just using parts from those sets. I guess they’re not shooting wide angle. Maybe to save money.”
You didn't think Alden Ehrenreich's performance wasn't necessary going to be talked about? After all, rumours suggested that Lucasfilm was so distraught with his performance as Han Solo that they hired an acting coach:
“Trying to mimic Harrison Ford is really tough,” the source says. “Lucasfilm wanted something very specific: copying someone else. Alden’s not a bad actor — just not good enough.”
“You could see his acting became more relaxed. He became more Harrison-like,” the source says. “The coach helped!”
Finally, with "The Last Jedi" having made $300M less than "the Force Awakens" at the domestic box-office, pressure is on Disney to deliver with ‘Solo’ which is currently having unpredictable box-office projections:
“They have to make [‘Solo’] good after ‘The Last Jedi’ didn’t make as much money as expected,” he says. “If they want to keep making ‘Star Wars’ movies, it has to be good.”
And if 'Solo' doesn't deiver the goods at the box-office? Episode IX will have to, as it would basically be a make it or break it for Disney at that point.