Those holding out hope for the ice-cool Lando Calrissian to swing by Star Wars: The Last Jedi will be disappointed to learn that Billy Dee Williams isn’t involved in Rian Johnson’s forthcoming sequel whatsoever.
News comes to us via the ongoing Celebration event in Orlando, Florida (with a tip of the hat to /Film), where Williams appeared on a panel specifically dedicated to the life and legacy of his Cloud City dweller. Bear in mind that there’s still a small chance that the actor’s comments are simply smoke and mirrors designed to maintain some semblance of surprise, but based on the word coming out of SWCO, it’s best not to get our hopes up.
Per Twitter:
https://twitter.com/AlphaPlank77/status/852588464315011073
Don’t worry, though; the spirit of Lando will soon live on through Donald Glover. The actor/artist who moonlights as Childish Gambino is attached to play the iconic Calrissian via Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s Han Solo anthology film, when he’ll be sharing the screen with Alden Ehrenreich, Emilia Clarke, Woody Harrelson, and many more.
If you’ve been keeping a close eye on the ever-active Star Wars news cycle over the past few months, then you’ve likely seen those candid photos of Billy Dee Williams meeting with Donald Glover to discuss all things Lando Calrissian, and here, the former reflects on what that conversation was like.
He’s a very delightful young man, I must say. We had a very nice lunch and we talked for a very long time and it was very easy. He had questions about [Lando]. I guess he was doing what normal actors do, they just want to find out what direction they want to take so they gather their information. So, we just sat and talked, and I didn’t want to impose on anything he wanted to do — he’s got his own ideas, I would imagine. I know he has his own ideas. He’s a very talented young man. In fact, I was listening to some of his music [Childish Gambino, Glover’s musical alter-ego] and it’s pretty good stuff.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi shoots for theaters on December 15th, and is expected to lift the curtain on its very first teaser trailer tomorrow, so keep it locked to WGTC. As for that untitled Han Solo anthology film, Donald Glover will slip into the role of the smooth-talking smuggler on May 25th, 2018.
