Why Disney Should Continue The Adventures of Alden Ehrenreich’s Han Solo

Alden Ehrenreich's young Han Solo deserves another shot.

Solo A Star Wars Story Alden Ehrenreich Disney Han Solo

With Solo joining the other Star Wars films in the franchise on Disney Plus and Alden Ehrenreich doing press for Peacock’s Brave New World, the desire for a sequel has never been louder. At the moment, there’s no telling what the future holds for Star Wars on the big screen. What we do know is that the franchise will continue to have a presence on Disney Plus with several original shows on the way and the potential for smaller films, and with that space, Disney and Lucasfilm should continue the adventure’s of Alden Ehrenreich’s Han Solo.

The adventures of a young Han Solo were originally going to be featured in George Lucas’ ambitious, yet scrapped Star Wars: Underworld TV series. Lucas continued to explore the stories of a young Han Solo with franchise veteran screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan before Disney bought Lucasfilm. Kasdan went on to help J.J. Abrams with The Force Awakens before coming back to co-write Solo with his son, Jon. There was a lot of doubt in the fandom with the idea of a Han Solo film and that would only continue with the firing of Phil Lord and Chris Miller, which all culminated with Solo becoming the lowest grossing live-action Star Wars film of all time, earning $329 million worldwide.

Disney CEO Bob Iger has since taken the blame for Solo in large part because the film didn’t have the normal Star Wars marketing campaign and came out in-between Avengers: Infinity War and Deadpool 2. Despite all of the behind-the-scenes drama and Solo struggling at the box office, it somehow ended up being a really good movie.

I think Solo as whole does suffer when it shoves in how Han met Chewbacca and Lando, won the Millennium Falcon and completed the Kessel Run. With that being said, the film still pulls it off and really shines with all the new elements in the story such as Qi’ra, Beckett, Enfys Nest, and other characters along with Bradford Young’s stunning visuals and John Powell’s masterful score. I think one could even argue that Solo has one of the best written Star Wars scripts ever. The film also rests on the shoulders of young Han Solo actor Alden Ehrenreich, who does the unthinkable by delivering a performance that is one of the best we’ve gotten in a recent Star Wars film.

Unlike the previous anthology film Rouge One, Solo also leaves the door open for more adventures. Jon Kasdan has teased that the next Solo film would’ve explored the crime syndicates, which was kickstarted with Maul’s shocking cameo at the end of the first one. Solo also ends with the Millennium Falcon headed to Tatooine, where Han will no undoubtedly encounter Jabba the Hutt for the first time.

Solo could end right where it did and we could never get a continuation, but there’s still the big question of what happened with Qi’ra, who was going to Dathomir to face Crimson Dawn leader Maul. While I think Star Wars needs to focus on giving us new characters in new eras, I can make an exception for Alden Ehrenreich’s Han Solo. More thrilling adventures with Han and Chewie can be a lot of fun and continuing Qi’ra’s storyline can add a lot of layers to the galaxy we already know.

There have been rumors that Disney might be exploring a Crimson Dawn or Lando series for Disney Plus, but there hasn’t been anything concrete. It’s clear Disney and Lucasfilm are trying to figure out how to handle the franchise moving forward, but I think there’s definitely room for more Solo. Alden Ehrenreich recently said that he doesn’t know if there are plans for more, but also made great point that we know have a Han Solo who is the one that we know and love by the end of the film. Therefore, Disney and Lucasfilm can continue to tell exciting, new, and original adventures with the smuggler.

While I don’t think a theatrically-released Solo sequel is necessary, I do think Han Solo’s story can continue on Disney Plus in a variety of different ways. Perhaps, Disney can resurrect the idea of a Star Wars: Underworld series and follow The Clone Wars model with arcs. This way, you can continue the story of Qi’ra, a young Han Solo, Lando, and do it in the form of a mini-movie that lasts two-three episodes because it’s hard to tell if all these characters will cross paths again. We could also simply get a full-on Solo sequel that premieres exclusively on Disney Plus. There are a lot of exciting directions Lucasfilm can take a Solo series.

I’m not alone in thinking Solo should’ve been a Disney Plus series instead of a movie in the first place, but the streaming service wasn’t around when the film was being being developed. There also wasn’t any thought that a live-action Star Wars show could even work until The Mandalorian came out. More adventures with fan-favorite characters can have a lot of potential, especially since Disney is already giving shows to Cassian Andor and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Disney Plus is going to need content and it’s clear they are pulling a lot from all their assets– Marvel Studios already has eight shows in development for the streaming service

The future of Star Wars should have a mix of both new and old, while exploring all the different eras to create unique content that doesn’t turn the franchise stale. With the #MakeSolo2Happen fan campaign and more Disney Plus users either discovering or re-discovering Solo on the streaming service, a continuation of that film has a lot of potential. A Solo sequel can also have unique place in the Disney Plus Star Wars line-up, as long as we get some original stories too. It’s clear that Lucasfilm and Disney do listen to the fans given the fact that The Clone Wars came back and because of all the noise lately, I have a good feeling about Solo‘s future.

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Ryden Scarnato

Ryden Scarnato

Ryden's affection for all things DC, Marvel, and Star Wars has led him to entertainment journalism at Heroic Hollywood as a News Editor.