Ron Howard opened up to Vulture in more detail than ever before about taking over as the director of the “Star Wars” prequel movie “Solo” after Lucasfilm and original directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller had creative differences. Howard said it all came down to the movie’s tone. Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy asked him to a lunch meeting, where they were joined by “Solo” co-writer Jonathan Kasdan.
“They basically said, ‘We’ve reached a creative impasse with Lord and Miller. Would you ever consider coming in?’” Howard remembered. “I looked at some edited footage, and I saw what was bothering them. There was a studio that liked the script the way it was and wanted a ‘Star Wars’ movie, but there was a disconnect early on tonally, and they weren’t convinced that what Phil and Chris were doing was working effectively.”
“I couldn’t judge that because I didn’t see enough of it to know. But they were sure,” Howard continued. “Once I said, ‘Okay, I think I can do this script, and I think I understand what you want of this script,’ they said, ‘We’d want to reshoot a lot.’ I looked at the whole movie and then pointed out some things that I thought were great. And Phil and Chris were incredibly gracious throughout that process. They were just seeing two different movies. So I came in, I had a blast, but there’s nothing personal about that film whatsoever. It’s still just a shame. I can’t wait for Phil and Chris’s next movie.”
Howard even got the chance to consult with “Star Wars” creator George Lucas, who was not involved in the development or filming of “Solo.” Before Howard committed to taking over as “Solo” director, he got advice from Lucas. The creator told him: “Just don’t forget — it’s for 12-year-old boys.”
“Solo” was supposed to launch a new sector of storytelling for “Star Wars” with young iterations of Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) and Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover) being introduced and intended for sequels and spinoffs. The 2018 film also revealed that Darth Maul from “The Phantom Menace” was still alive. None of these plans have taken shape after “Solo” bombed at the box office with just $392 million worldwide.
During an appearance on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast in 2019, Howard called the response to the film “disappointing.” He said: “It made a lot of money, it just didn’t live up to expectations. I came in eager to help, felt like I could, and had a blast. Normally it takes three years, I worked eight months and had an experience. I feel very good about the way it turned out. I loved the way it played to audiences, which I witnessed. All of that I am able to feel good about.”
Howard cited nostalgia has a reason “Solo” might’ve bombed at the box office. “Maybe it’s the idea that it’s too nostalgic,” he said. “That going back and revisiting an origin story for a beloved character may not be what the fans were looking for.”
Head over to Vulture’s website to read Howard’s interview in its entirety.
