Ron Howard Steps in to Direct Han Solo Movie

Welp, it's official. Richie Cunningham is directing the Han Solo movie. Following the shocking news from earlier this week that Lucasfilm and Han Solo directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller had decided to part ways, the film once again has a director. Lucasfilm announced that Oscar winner Ron Howard would take over directorial duties on the film effective immediately, with filming to resume on July 10, once Howard has had a chance to meet with the cast and creative team and gauge their feelings on the whole matter. 

As reported by Deadline, Howard made his first official comments on the situation during an event last night in France...

“So many people involved with the Star Wars franchise are friends, so it’s gratifying to be able to lend my voice to the universe — coming in when it’s already been in production and there is a great amount of work done.”

I think that's about as diplomatic as it gets. While this decision will be analyzed and nitpicked to death over the next year, the only thing we can do at this point is wait and see how this all shakes out. There's no denying that Howard is a capable director who will certainly deliver a solid film, but it's a shame we'll never get to see the version on which Lord and Miller were working. That one resides in an alternate universe now, showing at a theater alongside Edgar Wright's Ant-Man, Tim Burton's Superman Lives, and Alejandro Jodorowsky's Dune. I'd give my left nut to buy a ticket to any of those.