The release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi has started to wind down, but that doesn't mean that the Star Wars fervor has dwindled. Many fans are looking forward to the release of Solo: A Star Wars Story this coming May, but for some fans, the film apparently won't go by that title. In fact, Solo: A Star Wars Story is reportedly being rebranded as Ranger Solo in China, following the mediocre performance of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in the Asian market. Chinese film market analyst Gavin Feng took to social media and revealed:
So there you have it. Although American audiences will be treated to a film called Solo: A Star Wars Story, it looks like the Chinese version of the film will be referred to as Ranger Solo -- which, let's be honest, is arguably badass in its own right. Major blockbusters released in Asian markets often do go through name changes in order to translate better for a different culture (such as Thor: Ragnarok, which became Thor: Battle Royale when it was shipped overseas to Japan), but dropping the instantly-recognizable Star Wars label from Solo: A Star Wars Story's title seems particularly notable.
It's not difficult to understand why Solo: A Star Wars Story is dropping the Star Wars element from its title when we look at recent box office performances from films in the franchise. In China, Star Wars: The Last Jedi didn't perform nearly as well as it did in western markets, and it was even pulled from screens shortly after its Chinese premiere. Instead of putting the Star Wars element front and center, it looks like the film is instead opting to distance itself from the Star Wars brand and earn an audience on its own merit.
Even with this new development, there's still quite a bit that we don't know about Solo: A Star Wars Story, as the film has gone through one of the most tumultuous development and production periods in recent memory. Between the behind-the-scenes drama that went down over the summer (which resulted in Ron Howard replacing Phil Lord and Chris Miller behind the camera) and the fact that we have seen no footage from this film yet, it's hard to tell what to expect.
CinemaBlend will bring you more information related to Solo: A Star Wars Story a.k.a Ranger Solo as new details related to the film become available to us. The latest installment in the Star Wars franchise is set for its American debut on May 25, 2018, so make sure to mark the date down on your calendars and check out our 2018 movie premiere guide to see what else is debuting this year!
