“Fast ship? You mean you’ve never heard of the Millennium Falcon?” to which an enquiring Obi-Wan Kenobi responds, “should I have?” Affronted, Harrison Ford’s wise-cracking nerf herder then utters that by-now famous line: “It’s the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs.”
That scene in question, as any Star Wars fan will know, unfolds in Mos Eisley Cantina, in which the swashbuckling Han Solo offers his services (and his ship!) to the rather desperate Obi-Wan and Luke Skywalker, as they seek out safe passage to the Alderaan system. The Falcon’s historic feat is later mentioned in The Force Awakens, when Ford’s reluctant hero quickly corrects Rey about the Kessel Run and those 12 parsecs – a measurement of distance, not time, that equates to around 3.26 light-years.
Such a minor piece of Star Wars lore may be brushed aside by general moviegoers, but it seems this legacy isn’t lost on writer-director Ron Howard. Having assumed control of Lucasfilm’s Han Solo anthology pic from the outgoing Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the Oscar-winner has been posting regular updates via Twitter, and the latest makes an indirect reference to that aforementioned Kessel Run.
The photo below was uploaded yesterday evening with the caption, “spicey?”, all but confirming that Howard’s spinoff will pay a visit to the far-flung spice mines aboard the planet Kessel.
It certainly aligns with those previous story rumors – rumors which claimed Han Solo would feature two famous locations from Star Wars history: Corellia and Kessel. Furthermore, it’s believed the Ron Howard-directed pic unfolds across “three different eras over a seven-year period,” during which time we’ll check in on Alden Ehrenreich’s smuggler between the ages of 18 and 24.
Flanked by Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson, Donald Glover, Thandie Newton and, crucially, not Michael K. Williams, whose character has seemingly been replaced by Avengers star Paul Bettany, Ehrenreich will be introduced as our new Han Solo on May 25th, 2018.
