It’s getting very difficult to keep up with all of the Star Wars films, but just to sum it up (both to refresh your memory and mine, though perhaps one’s memory is better devoted to things other than multitudinous Hollywood spinoffs): there’s the current series, beginning with The Force Awakens, of direct sequels to the first six Star Wars films. Then, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is incoming — and that’s about the rebel alliance’s (clearly failed) mission to prevent the Death Star from coming into existence. And finally, there’s a spinoff film about Han Solo — starring Hail, Casear!’s Alden Ehrenreich — in the works, and this film happens to be the one this news post is about. I think. Yes.
The Hollywood Reporter has announced that the directors of the film — Phil Lord and Christopher Miller — have tested three front-runner actresses for the female lead character of the Han Solo spinoff this week. Though everything still clearly remains uncertain, Tessa Thompson, Zoë Kravitz and Naomi Scott are all in the running. (It was announced a while back that they were likewise doing tests with actors to play Lando Calrissian, who was portrayed by Billy Dee Williams in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi — but there are no updates on that front.)
Tessa Thompson recently earned critical praise for her performance in Creed and her starring role in Dear White People; she can currently be seen on Westworld, and will soon be playing Valkyrie in Taika Waititi’s Thor: Ragnarok. Zoë Kravitz has also recently been in some highly popular films recently — playing Christina in the Divergent series, Toast the Knowing in Mad Max: Fury Road, and a yet-unannounced role in the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them films (yes, there will be more than one of those, now, too.) Naomi Scott will be playing Kimberly (aka, the Pink Ringer) in the upcoming Power Rangers movie.
Unfortunately, there are no further details about who this character is yet, beyond the very vague “female lead” title — perhaps it’s because the film is set to open on May 25, 2018, which, with Rogue One and Episode VIII coming out well before it, feels like it’s part of a “galaxy far far away.”