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The Search For Young Han Solo Narrowed Down For Upcoming ‘Star Wars’ Film

By Shaunee Flowers
Published on: 09:20 PST, Mar 15, 2016

The search for a young Han Solo for an upcoming Disney standalone Star Wars film has been narrowed down to just three contenders, according to the Hollywood Reporter. According to THR sources, testing for the role was held in London last week with Alden Ehrenreich, Jack Reynor, and Taron Egerton. There are reportedly a few more names on the short list of actors pegged to possibly take on the role of Han Solo for the upcoming project.

It’s not clear if the London test was a screen test, or if the actors were in costumes. It was learned that Egerton, Reynor, and Ehrenreich were chosen from a group of at least 10 young hopefuls to meet with directors of the upcoming Star Wars film. Based on the amount of secrecy involved in a Star Wars film, further details of the testing were made available and Disney is not commenting on news that they are getting closer to choosing who will end up playing the young Han Solo.

Disney and Lucasfilm have been searching for the perfect actor to play the younger version of Harrison Ford’s iconic role. With reports of around 2,500 Han Solo hopefuls either meeting with casting directors or sending in film of themselves, this is quickly becoming one of the biggest casting calls ever, according to the THR report.

Little is known about the Star Wars standalone film, except that it is being made by Disney, Lucasfilm, and filmmakers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. Fans expect the film to detail the life of young Han Solo, and it will be released in 2018.

Vulture reported that in addition to Alden Ehrenreich, Jack Reynor, and Taron Egerton, Disney and Lucasfilm are also considering Emory Cohen, Ansel Elgort, and Miles Teller for the iconic role first made famous by Ford in the original Star Wars films Star Wars: A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and 2015’s The Force Awakens.

The upcoming Star Wars film is still two years in the making but Disney has confirmed some information about the very exciting standalone film. Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed during the Deutsche Bank 2016 Media, Internet & Telecom Conference that the upcoming 2018 Star Wars film will explain how Han Solo and Chewbacca met.

The actual premise for the film is still highly secret but it was revealed that Chewbacca owes a lifelong debt to his friend, who according to Vine Report, saved Chewbacca. Due to this, Han Solo’s faithful friend remained by his side throughout the Star Wars films.

Disney and Lucasfilms have been working for months to find exactly the right fit for the role of Han Solo. Alden Ehrenreich is a shoe-in for the role after recently blowing audiences away in the recent Coen Brothers film Hail, Caesar. Likewise, Jack Reynor is best known as the Transformers replacement for Shia LeBeouf. Taron Egerton is one of the most recent young men to be added to the list in the running for the role of Han Solo. Cinema Blend calls Egerton one of the hottest actors in Hollywood after his role in Kingsmen: The Secret Service, and sounded a bit shocked that Egerton wasn’t considered for the Star Wars role much sooner.

Based on the short list of actors vying for the Han Solo role, who should take over and play the younger version of Harrison Ford’s iconic character?

[Photos by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images, Keith Tsuji/Getty Images, John Phillips/Getty Images]

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