Solo: A Star Wars Story has been described as many things by many people.
It’s an origin story, first and foremost, while Lucasfilm boss Kathleen Kennedy believes the forthcoming prequel contains all the hallmarks of a “gunslinger-type” movie. Ron Howard, on the other hand, has been quoted as saying that his version of Solo is more akin to an old-school Western with heist elements – fitting, really, given it centers on the galaxy’s most endearing smuggler.
And now, as we quickly approach the film’s release (May 25th), more and more is coming to light. After two thrilling trailers and a massive blowout by Entertainment Weekly, the tie-in merchandise is beginning to surface and some of it is actually pretty interesting.
Case in point: the Solo action figures you’ll see down in the gallery below. Mixed in with some new Last Jedi figures, too, these toys for Howard’s upcoming spinoff give us a great look at Alden Ehrenreich’s Solo, Donald Glover’s Lando Calrissian, Emilia Clarke’s Qi’ra and more.
Given that both trailers held quite a bit back and only offered up brief glimpses of the main cast, it’s nice to finally be able to get a clearer and more detailed look at how they’ll appear in the movie. There’s still not much to go on here, of course, but with more and more merch starting to pour out now, you can bet that this is only the tip of the iceberg and we can’t wait to see what else there is.
After all, between its A-list cast and rat-a-tat pacing, Solo made a good first impression with its trailer footage, while Bradford Young’s cinematography imbues the film with a bleak, gritty color palette – one that fits the title character like a glove. Admittedly, we still do have a few hesitations and the spinoff has yet to win us over completely, but now that the marketing blitz is well and truly underway, we’re certainly excited to see more.
It’s the fourth installment in Lucasfilm’s rebooted franchise, and after the mixed reaction to The Last Jedi – online, at least – there’s a particular weight of expectation resting on the young shoulders of Solo: A Star Wars Story. No pressure, then.
