Harrison Ford promises older, wiser Solo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Actor, now 73, wanted character killed off after Return of the Jedi, but later understood the well had not run dry for the space franchise. He says it is the ‘new discoveries’ he worked with on The Force Awakens who ‘carry the movie’
When speaking about Star Wars, there are few topics that inspire a twinkle in Harrison Ford's eyes.
The 73-year-old actor is matter-of-fact about almost everything involving the sci-fi series’ latest episode – from his reunion with Carrie Fisher (“It was no big deal.”) to the franchise's unwavering popularity (“For me, it's old news.”).
However, when Ford brings up his new co-stars, he lights up like the Millennium Falcon charging through hyperspace.
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After more than 30 years, Ford is reprising his role as smart-alec smuggler Han Solo in director J. J. Abrams' Star Wars: The Force Awakens, out next week.
The character, who hasn't been seen on screen since celebrating the fall of the Galactic Empire in 1983's Return of the Jedi, serves as an unlikely mentor to scavenger Rey (Daisy Ridley), defector Finn (John Boyega) and pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) as they team up to take on masked adversary Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and his minions.
While the film has been cloaked in an unparalleled level of secrecy, Ford guaranteed that fans can expect the same Solo they fell in love with from the original Star Wars trilogy.
Ford, who infamously wanted George Lucas to kill off Solo in Return of the Jedi, had a “why not?” attitude about suiting back up as Solo. He wasn't surprised by Disney's Death Star-sized plan to revive the franchise after acquiring Lucasfilm in 2012 for more than US$4 billion. The studio is planning to release a stand-alone film about a young Solo in 2018.
“If you make a huge investment in a product and it pays off, there's wisdom in seeing whether the well has run dry,” Ford said. “If the well has run dry, [expletive] admit it and go on to something else. This well has not dried, especially when you introduce new discoveries, which Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac and Adam Driver represent.”
“They wanted to know if I didn't like something, and we would talk about ways to fix it,” Ford said. “That's what we do. It's a collaborative process. There wasn't much. [Lawrence] Kasdan was back. He was one of the writers from the original films. He has a keen understanding on how the beast works, so I think they produced a script that – in my mind – was very easy to work with.”
“I had been ready,” he said. “I didn't have much to think about. I think it gave J.J. some more time to think about some of the scenes.”
After his work on the postponed production eventually wrapped up, Ford endured another mishap involving a flying machine. The aeronautical aficionado suffered several injuries when his vintage plane's engine failed and crashed in Santa Monica, California.
The accidents haven't stopped Ford from returning to the sky.
“Oh, [expletive] no, I fly all the time,” said Ford, with his eyes glowing again. “I want to spend more time flying. That's what I want to do.”
Associated Press
Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens on December 17