1
Credit: LucasfilmStar Wars, like most legacy franchises, is at a crossroads.
When Disney and Lucasfilm continued to unveile their slate of “Star Wars Story” anthology films, 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story was meant to be a sure thing: an origin story for one of the franchise’s most beloved characters–Harrison Ford’s Han Solo. Even being backed by a directing team fresh off The Lego Movie (2014) and 21 Jump Street (2012), it became a cautionary tale that still shapes how Lucasfilm approaches spinoffs today.
Behind-the-Scenes Chaos Derailed the Production
The film’s turmoil began with a creative clash between then-Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy and original directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller–the duo behind this year’s critical and commercial hit, Project Hail Mary (2026). That conflict ended with Lord and Miller’s departure and Ron Howard stepping in to finish production and oversee extensive reshoots.
The fallout extended well beyond the director’s chair. The reshoots caused the budget to increase significantly to around $365 million. The movie netted just $393 million at the global box office, making it one of the biggest box office disappointments for Disney and Lucasfilm in Star Wars history. Let’s not forget that the movie came out during the sequel trilogy’s billion-dollar cinematic run (2015-2019), and was released just months after Rian Johnson’s franchise-altering Star Wars: Episode VIII–The Last Jedi (2017).
The #MakeSolo2Happen Movement Has Lost Steam
Every May, on the anniversary of Solo‘s release, a pocket of Star Wars fans still take to social media demanding a sequel under the hashtag #MakeSolo2Happen. That campaign has lost momentum in the years since, with Lucasfilm showing no indication that a follow-up is coming.
Alden Ehrenreich Isn’t Counting on a Comeback
Asked directly about the prospect of reprising Han Solo, Ehrenreich offered little encouragement. In an interview with IndieWire, the actor responded to the question with a brief and blunt answer: “No idea.” The interviewer pressed further, drawing a comparison to Andrew Garfield’s surprise return as Peter Parker in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). Ehrenreich replied, “Oh, interesting. We’ll see.”
Star Wars Has Already Found Its Next Scoundrel
While Ehrenreich’s Han Solo future remains murky, Lucasfilm hasn’t waited around to fill the roguish-smuggler-shaped hole in its lineup. That role now appears to belong to Ryan Gosling, who has been cast as Kade Auberon in Star Wars: Starfighter (2027), directed by Shawn Levy.
Where Solo tried to explain how Han Solo became the character audiences already knew and loved, Starfighter is taking a different approach entirely: introducing an original character built in that same charismatic, morally flexible mold, rather than retreading a legacy figure’s backstory. It’s a shift that seems, at least in part, like a lesson learned from Solo‘s struggles — audiences may be less interested in filling in the blanks of a beloved character’s past than in meeting a new one who can carry that same energy forward.
With Kathleen Kennedy out and Dave Filoni now steering the franchise, Star Wars: Starfighter represents something of a fresh start. Whether Gosling’s Kade Auberon becomes the breakout scoundrel this era of Star Wars needs remains to be seen, but Lucasfilm is clearly betting that a new face, rather than a familiar one, is the way to move past the shadow Solo—and other lukewarmly-received movie and streaming projects–left behind.
While we know now Gosling’s character name, other details have remained top secret. A recent report did, however, suggest that Gosling would be taking on that new Han Solo-esque role. “According to reports, Gosling plays a Han Solo-style rogue named [Kade] rather than a Jedi,” Inside the Magic previously claimed. “[Kade] is said to share a close bond with the father of Flynn Gray’s character — a name reportedly close to “Rone” or “Ronin” — and is tasked with escorting the boy to a hidden Jedi refuge on the planet Adaria.”
If you’re still holding out hope for a Solo sequel or Alden Ehrenreich’s return as Han Solo, don’t expect an announcement anytime soon — even the actor himself sounds unconvinced it will happen. Fans looking for that same charming-outlaw energy in the next chapter of Star Wars should instead keep an eye on Star Wars: Starfighter, where Ryan Gosling’s Kade Auberon looks to be positioned as the franchise’s answer to what Han Solo once represented.
How do you feel about the future of the Star Wars franchise? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!
