Entertainment Weekly is reporting inside information on the standalone movie front, claiming that two of the projects are Young Han Solo and Boba Fett.
From their report:
The Han Solo story would take place in the time period between Revenge of the Sith and the first Star Wars (now known as A New Hope), so although it’s possible Harrison Ford could appear as a framing device, the movie would require a new actor for the lead — one presumably much younger than even the 35-year-old Ford when he appeared in the 1977 original.
The Boba Fett film would take place either between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, or between Empire and Jedi, where the bounty hunter was last seen plunging unceremoniously into a sarlacc pit. Exactly who would play him isn’t much of a complication – in the original trilogy, he never took off his helmet. And in the prequels, we learned he was the son of the original stormtrooper clone, played by Temuera Morrison, who’s still the right age for the part if his services were required.
In addition to bringing back two fan-favorite characters as the leads of their own films, the Han Solo and Boba Fett projects would also allow Darth Vader, in full-on black death-metal gear, to return as a villain, since placing the spin-offs within the original trilogy would mean he is still alive and hissing. That timeline would also open the door for a return from visit with everyone’s favorite degenerate slug-like gangster, Jabba the Hutt.
I’m not sure how I feel about either of these, if true, but they’d both make sense. I want to see things out in the far reaches of the Star Wars universe with new characters. But if you’re looking at how much it costs to make one of these movies, you’re going to want to go with a sure bet. I get that.
And this would bring three of the most popular Star Wars characters back to the big screen.
Let’s hope Hayden Christensen and James Earl Jones would come back for the Darth Vader part.
But who would play Young Han Solo? Who could do such a thing? Shia LeBeouf?
As ever, this is unconfirmed, so please take it with a grain of salt. But if the Yoda rumour pans out, They’ll have chosen three distinct eras for the standalones, which also makes sense.
Star Wars Episode VII hits screens in 2015. Be sure to listen to the latest analysis on the Full of Sith podcast.