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Revisiting the only box office bomb in Star Wars history.
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00:00Though Solo certainly has its passionate defenders and cheerleaders, it's surely the least discussed
00:05live-action Star Wars movie to date, enough that you probably don't know enough about this
00:09fascinating production, beyond its obvious controversies, that is. So let's take a look
00:13at them as I'm Jules, this is WhatCulture.com, and these are 20 things you didn't know about
00:17Solo, a Star Wars story.
00:2120. Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Miles Teller, and many, many more were considered for Han
00:26It won't surprise anyone to learn that original directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller undertook
00:31an extensive manhunt to find an actor to play the young Han Solo. After all, given Harrison
00:36Ford's absolutely singular presence in the role, it required an actor of equal charm and
00:41gravitas to do Han some justice. And so, the directors auditioned more than 3,000 actors
00:47for the part, with some of the more prominent names including Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Miles
00:51Teller, Dave Franco, Charlie Cox, and even Chris Pratt.
00:55Curiously, though, Lord and Miller claimed that Ehrenreich was the first actor that they
00:59ever auditioned for Han, and that nobody else they saw made quite the same impression. The
01:03rest, as they say, is history.
01:0619. Reshoots Bloated the Budget to $275 Million
01:11You'll almost certainly be aware that Solo switched directors many months into shooting,
01:16with the Lego movies Phil Lord and Chris Miller being dismissed after clashing with Lucasfilm
01:20producers on the film's tone and shooting style. They were replaced with Ron Howard,
01:25a safe pair of hands if ever there was one, who reportedly ended up reshooting around 70%
01:30of the movie. The extensive reshoots ended up bloating the film's budget to a stonking
01:34$275 million, causing it to rank among the most expensive films ever made. Given that even the
01:40heavily tinkered with Rogue One cost only $220 million, that was a heavy incursion of added costs,
01:46and one which meant that Solo had to gross $500 million just to break even, which,
01:51shockingly, it didn't.
01:5418. Dryden Vos and Kira Were Originally Aliens
01:58It's not uncommon for Star Wars characters to go through numerous design iterations before the
02:02team settles on their final pick, though some of the original designs for two major characters
02:07were pretty out there. Villain Dryden Vos, played by Paul Bettany, was initially conceptualized as a
02:13dinosaur-esque, bird-like figure, but once the script introduced a love triangle between him,
02:17Kira, and Han, the obvious decision was to make him humanoid. Kira herself was also depicted as an
02:23alien in earlier designs, though in many of the concepts she still resembled a physically
02:26attractive humanoid, so it wouldn't have prevented a romance with Han.
02:3017. Phoebe Waller-Bridge Hadn't Seen a Star Wars Movie Before Being Cast
02:35Phoebe Waller-Bridge gives a show-stealing performance in Solo as L-337, Lando's sassy
02:41droid companion, and navigator. However, despite her casting in the film, the actress had never
02:46seen a Star Wars movie before. During an interview with Graham Norton, she revealed that she somehow
02:51even got the audition without knowing what a droid was, and so simply just played the part as a human.
02:56But everything clicked into place once a casting director asked her to play the part
03:00more droidy while moving like a robot. Waller-Bridge noted, however, that ultimately,
03:04she was asked to give a decidedly not droidy physical performance while playing her character.
03:09No word yet on whether she's actually seen the Star Wars movie since,
03:12though given that she's now actually in one, the odds are surely looking better.
03:1716. Harrison Ford Skipped the Premiere Entirely To Keep The Attention On Olden Ehrenreich
03:22When Solo had its world premiere in Los Angeles, there was much discussion about the conspicuous
03:27absence of Harrison Ford, who many simply assumed would attend the premiere in support of the project.
03:32And though this initially sparked a round of baseless, melodramatic reports pondering Ford's
03:37possible ambivalence about the movie, it was later stated that Ford opted not to attend in
03:42order to keep the attention on the actual star of the movie. Given Ford's own admissions that he
03:46suffers from anxiety during public engagements, though, it may have been a relief for him,
03:50all things considered. Regardless, Ford did meet with Ehrenreich prior to shooting,
03:54and gave him advice on embodying the character, and praised the actor's performance after viewing the film.
03:5915. Darth Maul Wasn't Included In The Original Script
04:03One of the most crowd-pleasing moments in the entire movie is Darth Maul's totally unexpected
04:08cameo at the end. Many fans were impressed at Lucasfilm's ability to keep the massive spoiler
04:13under wraps for so long, but as it turns out, Maul's appearance wasn't in the original script,
04:18and added fairly late in production. Originally, the script listed the leader of the Crimson Dawn as
04:23boss, leaving the door open for one of many fans-serving characters to fill the void.
04:27However, director Ron Howard himself lobbied hard for Maul to take the spot, resulting in the
04:32original Maul actor Ray Park being drafted in to physically portray the character once more,
04:37while the voice was provided by Sam Witwer, who has previously voiced him on both the Clone Wars
04:41and Rebels animated series.
04:4314. Han's enlisting scene was inspired by The Godfather Part II
04:49One of Solo's most maligned scenes occurs pretty early on when Han enlists in the Imperial Navy
04:54as a flight cadet and earns his surname, Solo, because he's on his own. It's a forced sliver
05:00of fan service that many fans understandably found a bit cringeworthy, but the scene as a whole actually
05:05has a surprisingly lofty inspiration. The scene was intended to be an homage of an iconic scene from
05:10The Godfather Part II of all movies, where nine-year-old Vito arrives at Ellis Island and
05:15has his surname changed from Andolini to Corleone. The two scenes have a faint visual
05:19resemblance for obvious reasons, but it goes without saying that Vito's naming scene is
05:23considerably more meaningful than Han's, which feels rather tacked on and unnecessary.
05:2913. Ron Howard previously turned down an offer to direct The Phantom Menace
05:33More than 20 years before Ron Howard stepped in to finish Solo, he was offered the opportunity to
05:38helm another Star Wars movie. Back when George Lucas was writing Star Wars Episode I The Phantom
05:43Menace, he intended for a trusted fellow filmmaker to take the directing reins, offering the job to
05:48Robert Zemeckis, Steven Spielberg, and then Howard himself. Each of the three graciously rejected the
05:53offer because, in Howard's words, it would be simply too daunting, while advising Lucas to direct
05:58the prequel himself. The Phantom Menace and its follow-ups, well, they are what they are,
06:02but it's impossible not to try and imagine what they might have been with Zemeckis,
06:05Spielberg, or Howard in the driver's seat instead.
06:0912. Val didn't die in the original script
06:12If you thought that the sacrificial death of Tobias Beckett's wife Val seemed a bit sudden
06:16and unceremonious at the end of the botched Coaxium heist, that's because it actually wasn't
06:21in the original script. In a recent interview with Inverse, Tandiwe Newton confirmed that Val's
06:26fate was changed during filming, and that she was massively disappointed that one of the few
06:30prominent black characters in the franchise was killed off so swiftly. She said,
06:34I remember at the time thinking, this is a big mistake. Not because of me, not because
06:38I wanted to come back. You don't kill off the first black woman to ever have a real
06:42role in a Star Wars movie. Like, are you f***ing joking?
06:4611. Christian Bale was considered for Tobias Beckett
06:49Though Woody Harrelson was absolutely perfectly cast as Han's roguish mentor Tobias Beckett,
06:55the part very nearly went to another A-lister instead. Turns out that Christian Bale was up for
06:59the role at one stage, and though it's never officially been confirmed why he didn't take the job,
07:03he did confirm in an interview that he loved Star Wars and very nearly accepted the offer.
07:08He said,
07:08Yes, it was very tempting. I not only loved the films going back to my childhood,
07:12but also have a very long relationship with Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall,
07:16because they did Empire of the Sun many years back. There was discussion, and I hope there
07:21will be future discussions.
07:22Now, this wasn't the first time that Bale had been linked to the series. His name was bandied
07:26around quite a lot when George Lucas was casting Anakin Skywalker for Attack of the Clones,
07:30as of course eventually went to Hayden Christensen. It goes without saying that Bale would have been
07:35a major credit to any Star Wars movie, so hopefully the producers will keep him in mind for a future
07:39project.
07:4110. The Imperial combat scenes were inspired by World War I
07:45Now, the scenes earlier in the film depicting Han in the midst of combat while enlisted in the
07:49Imperial Navy were designed to be reminiscent of real world warfare. In particular, these scenes
07:54were modeled off of trench warfare from World War I. The infantry charges with devastating explosions
07:59going off around them, the trench lines, and the sheer chaos of it all clearly parallels what
08:03you'd expect to see in a more traditional war movie. Given that much of the original trilogy's
08:08aesthetic and style was influenced by World War II, even beyond the obviousness of the Empire
08:12being Nazis, it's a little poetic that this prequel lifts from World War I instead.
08:179. Michael K. Williams Originally Played Dryden Vos
08:21Paul Bettany did a fantastic job playing Dryden Vos, though another celebrated actor was not only cast
08:27in the part before him but actually shot some scenes. The great Michael K. Williams, who sadly
08:32passed away last year, was first cast as Vos and shot numerous scenes as the character while Phil
08:36Lord and Christopher Miller were directing Solo. But once Ron Howard was brought in to reshoot most
08:41of the movie and Williams was called back, Williams was sadly unable to return due to scheduling issues,
08:46and so Bettany ended up taking his place. As good as Bettany was in the part, it's a damn,
08:51damn shame that we'll never get to see an actor of Williams' repute playing around in the
08:55Star Wars sandbox.
08:578. The film was shot with vintage lenses to create an aged aesthetic
09:01Solo was shot by the fantastically talented Oscar-nominated cinematographer Bradford Young,
09:07who made a bold attempt to film Solo in a style that approximated the look of the original trilogy
09:11of Star Wars movies. Young worked with Panavision to try and track down vintage lenses that would
09:16help replicate that grittier, dirtier look that he was hoping to achieve. Ultimately, Young adjusted some
09:21prime DNA lenses by removing their anti-glare coatings and detuning them. The end result
09:27speaks for itself, giving Solo a truer aesthetic relative to the original series. Even if some
09:32audiences used to watching overlit Hollywood movies and TVs these days complained that it looked
09:36a little bit too dark. I tell you, you can't win them all.
09:407. Paul Bettany was cast as Dryden Vos after sending Ron Howard a hilarious text
09:46As mentioned before, Paul Bettany took over the role of Dryden Vos from Michael K. Williams. But
09:50as for how Bettany himself scored the gig, well, the answer is funnier and way less professional
09:55than you'd ever expect. During an appearance on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon,
09:59Bettany confirmed that he got word of the role being available and sent Ron Howard a hilarious text.
10:04Have you ever spent the long winter evenings wondering why you're not in the Star Wars franchise?
10:08I have. Howard replied with,
10:10LOL, I'll get back to you, and that he certainly did.
10:136. Enfys Nest's Helmet Took Over a Year to Design
10:18Fittingly for the leader of a pirate gang known as the Cloud Riders, Nest's helmet had clearly
10:23been assembled from scavenged parts, ensuring that it perfectly informs who she is as a character
10:27and lets us know a little bit about her before she says or does anything. The film's costume
10:32designer spent roughly a year experimenting with designs for her helmet before settling on the
10:36final one, but in the interest of recycling, the rejected creations were then given to her fellow
10:41cloud riders instead. 5. Tessa Thompson, Zoe Kravitz,
10:46Jessica Henwick, and others auditioned for Kira
10:48As with Han, the role of female lead Kira was intensely sought after in Hollywood,
10:53with many up-and-coming actresses auditioning or being considered for the part. The role,
10:57of course, eventually went to Emilia Clarke, but before that, the likes of Tessa Thompson,
11:01Naomi Scott, Zoe Kravitz, and Jessica Henwick reportedly all had screen tests. Honestly,
11:06it sounds like the casting department had an embarrassment of riches here, and it's pretty
11:10easy to imagine just about any of these actresses fitting the bill as Kira, especially Thompson and
11:14Kravitz. 4. Dryden Vos' Facial Stripes Were Added Digitally
11:19As much as we all love the larger-than-life visual effects which root us so firmly in the far-flung
11:24world of Star Wars, sometimes the best and most impressive effects are the invisible ones that you
11:29don't even notice. Case in point, though you probably assumed that Dryden Vos' facial scars were the result of
11:34painstaking practical makeup, they were actually added entirely in post. Better still, even actor
11:39Paul Bettany himself didn't know about the scars until Ron Howard sent him a photo of the completed
11:44effect during post-production. 3. Darth Maul Voice Actor Peter Serafinowich
11:50Was Replaced During Post-Production
11:52As mentioned earlier, the voice of Darth Maul was provided by his animated voice actor Sam Witwer,
11:57but this wasn't originally the plan. Initially, the production sought to bring back Peter Serafinowich,
12:02who voiced Maul in The Phantom Menace. Serafinowich actually recorded Maul's dialogue for the film,
12:07but it was ultimately decided that his voice didn't really fit the character anymore,
12:10what with Witwer being more closely associated with Maul through his repeat appearances in animated
12:15media. Witwer said of the change in an interview with Star Wars Holocron,
12:19I don't want to say that Serafinowich was doing bad. It just didn't sound recognizable as the
12:23character from The Phantom Menace nor the character from Clone Wars. It was a totally different thing.
12:27They need people to recognize the voice, so there it is. And yet, according to Serafinowich,
12:32nobody at Lucasfilm opted to inform him until the film's premiere, which he evidently hadn't
12:36been invited to. Yikes.
12:392. It's the first and only box office bomb in the Star Wars franchise
12:44Even though Solo released to a fairly muted wave of pre-release hype, it was still a massive shock when
12:49the film went on to grossly underperform at the box office, netting a worldwide total of just $392.2
12:56million, against that rather bloated, aforementioned $275 million budget. Realistically,
13:02Solo needed to crack at least $500 million globally to be profitable, but given that The Force Awakens,
13:07Rogue One, and The Last Jedi all comfortably netted over $1 billion each, it didn't seem like a
13:12particularly daunting figure. As a result, Solo became the first box office bomb in Star Wars
13:17history. Though 2008's The Clone Wars animated film only made $68.3 million worldwide, it was also
13:23produced for a mere $8.5 million, ensuring it actually turned a profit. Up until Solo's release,
13:29Star Wars seemed practically bulletproof at the box office, enough that it caused Lucasfilm and
13:33Disney to reconsider their future projects. And speaking of which…
13:371. A Solo Trilogy Was Originally In The Works
13:40Before Solo bombed, there was plans for an entire trilogy of young Han Solo films, with the team
13:46contracted for future installments, and with the opportunity to include Han as a supporting
13:50character in other Star Wars spin-offs. The writing staff of Solo stated that they wanted
13:55to include the bounty hunter Bosk, who was briefly seen in The Empire Strikes Back, in a potential
14:00sequel, and considered possibly focusing on the Hutt cartel, while Kathleen Kennedy and
14:04Donald Glover both talked up a potential Lando spin-off. Ultimately, all of this was put on ice
14:09after Solo catastrophically underperformed. And by March 2020, word from Lucasfilm was that Solo 2
14:15was a tough sell. But given the many interesting characters introduced in Solo, it'd be a damn
14:21shame if they weren't put to use in a future Disney Plus Star Wars series.
14:26And there we go, my friends! Those were 20 things you didn't know about Solo,
14:29a Star Wars story. I hope you enjoyed that, and please let me know what you thought about it down
14:32in the comments section below. As always, I've been Jules, so you can go follow me over on Twitter
14:36at RetroJWithAZero, or you can swing by Live and Let's Dice, where I do all my streaming outside of
14:41work, and it'd be great to see you over there. But before I go, I just want to say one thing.
14:45Hope you treat yourself with love and respect, my friends, because you bloody well deserve it,
14:49alright? And don't let anything or anyone else tell you otherwise, alright? You're a massive ledge,
14:53now go out there and smash it. As always, I've been Jules, you have been awesome,
14:57never forget that, and I'll speak to you soon. Bye.
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