The role of young Han Solo for Disney's untitled Star Wars story anthology is one that's been hotly competed, with the field going from a massive list of candidates to a manageable short-list in seemingly record time. Now, we've received information that one name above all others is in a commanding lead to play the younger incarnation of the infamously roguish smuggler. If you're an Alden Ehrenreich fan, then today's your lucky day, as he's the man at the top of the heap!
A source close to the untitled spin-off's production gave Deadline the leg up, stating that Ehrenreich was so impressive that he jumped to the head of a list that included such candidates as Transformers: Age Of Extinction's Jack Reynor, Kingsman: The Secret Service's Taron Egerton, and Brooklyn's Emory Cohen. Naturally, while this item is a rumor from the usual "sources close to the production," it doesn't seem like too much of a stretch for this to be true. Which is good, considering how it's hard not to get excited about Alden Ehrenreich's possible participation in the Phil Lord / Chris Miller directed spin-off.
While Ehrenreich has had roles in such moderate visibility films as Beautiful Creatures and Blue Jasmine, his greatest claim to fame has been the role of Hobie Doyle in this year's Coen Brothers offering Hail, Caesar! Alden Ehrenreich's portrayal of the lovable, but slightly dim cowboy earned him some of the raves that the screwball comedy had logged in its theatrical release. In fact, if you remember the pre-release materials that were released earlier this year, it only took one trailer for the relatively fresh actor to become the breakout star of the film.
Between the quick comedic timing, as well as his extraordinary levels of cowboy swagger, Alden Ehrenreich seems like the perfect front-runner for the young Han Solo spin-off that follows Rogue One: A Star Wars Story in the canon of standalone films that will help fill in the gaps of the Star Wars universe. Though we'd venture a guess that if Ehrenreich's hypothetically charming performance translates into similarly impressive box office numbers, the adventures of the smuggler from Corellia might become a sort of mini-franchise of their own.
Though we'll have to wait until 2018 for the as of yet untitled Han Solo spin-off, Alden Ehrenreich can next be seen in Warren Beatty's Howard Hughes biopic, which will be released at some point this awards season.
