Ron Howard to take over directing duties as Phil Lord and Chris Miller exit the untitled Han Solo movie

Image from The Hollywood Reporter

By Darian Scalamoni

            Earlier this week, news broke that the directors of the Untitled Han Solo Star Wars Anthology Film, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The Lego Movie, 21 Jump Street) were fired from the production due to creative differences between them and long-time Lucasfilm producers, Kathleen Kennedy and Lawrence Kasdan. Now, the replacement is signed on as THR reports that Ron Howard, will take over as director on the project.

            In a quote from the report, “Howard is considered to be a safe choice to complete the task, someone who will more than ably finish the movie while being a calming presence on set,” and on paper, his hiring makes sense. He’s an accomplished veteran who won’t rock the boat, and he’ll get the job done. According to THR, Howard will meet with the actors “to soothe a rattled set and will pore over a rough edit to see what the project has and still needs.”

            There’s three and a half weeks of shooting left in principal photography but having said that, this still rubs me the wrong way. I was very excited to see this movie with Lord and Miller directing and the other question is, who gets the credit for direction here? They did direct about 75-80% of the film so that remains to be seen. Howard has had some great movies but other than Rush, he hasn’t had a good movie in quite a few years. It’s a bit underwhelming but because he’s a veteran in the business, it makes sense. The still-untitled Han Solo movie opens in theaters on May 25^th, 2018.

            How do you guys feel about Ron Howard taking over the Han Solo movie? Are you upset that Lord and Miller are no longer directing? Is there someone else you would’ve liked for the job? Let us know in the comments section!