Sunday, August 16, 2015

'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' Crew on Harrison Ford’s Return As Han Solo


Harrison Ford has been known through the years to have a different view towards his role as the iconic Han Solo. He once called the character “dumb as a stump” in a 2008 interview. Even before the first trilogy's ending, it was thought that he didn't want to return for another sequel. But now things seem to have turned around, as Harrison Ford is finally set to reprise his role as the fan-favorite smuggler for the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens. And based from the reaction of the fans for the trailer, his appearance will be a moment that everyone will never forget.

                Entertainment Weekly spoke with The Force Awakens crew members about Ford's return to Pinewood studios, the filming location of the first trilogy, and talked about what finally convinced the actor to sign on for the project:

I think what really got him excited was when he read the first draft, and he saw where we were going and what we were doing. He was immediately on board, and then he sat down and had a great conversation with J.J. and went through, in detail, what we were thinking about doing. And then, you know, Harrison — and I’ve always found this over the years with the Indiana Jones films we’ve all done together — he’s incredibly collaborative when it comes to story and developing his character, and really engaged in the process. And he was every bit that on this film.”

                This should be exciting news to fans, knowing that their beloved Star Wars franchise is in good hands. J.J. Abrams has shown even way before he was on Star Trek that he is a big fan of the Star Wars franchise so it's not a surprise that he would want to handle it with as much care as possible. Having convinced Harrison Ford to return is a good sign that Abrams is deeply involved in the project and is willing to do the movie justice.

                 Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy also told EW about Ford's first day on the set, stating that it was a special moment for everyone in the crew that day:

The minute Harrison and Chewie walked on board the Millennium Falcon — that was incredible. Every single person on the set was stunned. I remember turning around, and there must have been 200 people gathered behind me — completely quiet. I didn’t even know they were there. The whole crew had stopped working, staring at the monitor, because it was so iconic.

                For a while, Harrison Ford had to take a break due to an accident on the filming location that left Ford with a broken leg. Even so, this didn't stop him from giving it his all. Abrams and screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan initially thought that they had to rewrite some of Ford's scenes, but soon realized that it wouldn't be necessary.

It wasn’t something that we knew for a little while. When it became clear that he was going to be just fine, we realized we didn’t need to change [the script] at all. In fact, there are some places where he’s more active than he was prior to the accident. As you’ll see in the movie, he is running and doing more physical activity in this movie than I think anyone who knows he was injured would expect. Nothing was adjusted or lessened because of that accident. Even for Harrison, who is famously resilient and strong, he blew everyone’s minds.


                From what we've heard with the crew, it looks like the man who was cynical about being in Star Wars is now dedicated to give the audiences a great film and an exciting new trilogy to look forward to. Unfortunately, we'll have to wait a few more months before the first film premieres.

                Star Wars: The Force Awakens includes Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, AnthonyDaniels, Peter Mayhew and more. The movie is set to debut in theaters on December 18th 2015.

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