Solo: A Star Wars Story will see an iconic character of the big screen played, for the first time, by somebody who isn't Harrison Ford. It had to be something of an interesting feeling to watch a movie starring a character that he had originated, but Harrison Ford has done that, as he has seen Solo and director Ron Howard says that Ford didn't just like it, he absolutely raved about it. According to Howard...
I had never heard Harrison effusive about anything, and he was raving about it. He said, 'Alden nailed it. He made it his own.'
Harrison Ford has actually seen Solo: A Star Wars Story twice, which would also seem to confirm that he liked it, if he was willing to sit through it a second time, but Ron Howard tells Variety that after seeing it the first time Ford called him to tell him how good a job he thought Alden Ehrenreich had done in the title role.
The idea of seeing the new actor make the role of Han Solo his own is something that Harrison Ford has been talking about since back when people were first asking him about the fact that somebody else would be playing the role in this prequel movie. Clearly, Ford thought it was important that an actor did not try to just copy whatever he had done, and it seems that Ford believes Alden Ehrenreich took that advice and was the better for it.
While Harrison Ford's seal of approval may not matter in the grand scheme of things, it will likely be valuable to fans, who will clearly feel strange watching anybody else play Han Solo. While Ford hasn't always loved the character as much as the fans do, he famously wanted to see him killed off at the end of Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi, the fact is that the character had a pretty significant impact on his career so it's still a big deal.
Of course, if you're the sort of person who believes the best thing that Alden Ehrenreich could have done was try to impersonate a young Harrison Ford and come across as much like the character we know as possible, then this endorsement might actually be the exact opposite of what you're looking for. While there is certainly value in making the character "your own" it also has to be believable to the audience that the character in Solo eventually becomes the one in Star Wars: A New Hope.
How the rest of the Han Solo fans will feel remains to be seen. The early ticket sales for Solo: Star Wars Story have been remarkably good, so the excitement level for the new movie is clearly high. However, with all the shenanigans and goings-on behind the scenes, there are still a lot of questions about the final product that won't be answered until fans actually see the final cut.
