Lucasfilm’s “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” directed by Academy Award–winning filmmaker Ron Howard will become available for digital download this week. The movie stars Alden Ehrenreich who steps into the boots of Han Solo, played previously by Harrison Ford. The action-packed film explores Han’s first encounters with future friend and copilot Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo) and notorious gambler Lando Calrissian (Donald Glover), as well as his adventure-filled past alongside fellow street thief Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke) and career criminal Beckett (Woody Harrelson).
Watch instantly on Sept. 14th as the Millennium Falcon sets course digitally in HD and 4K Ultra HD and on Movies Anywhere, and bring the adventure home on Blu-ray 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and On-Demand on Sept. 25.
To celebrate the pending release, Lucasfilm has released a clip of the surprise cameo appearance by one of the pre-quel’s fan-favorite characters. If you haven’t seen the film yet, this will be a spoiler.
Although that is Ray Park returning to perform the Darth Maul role, the voice is provided by Sam Witwer, who has provided the voice every time Maul has appeared in Lucasfilm’s animated Star Wars TV shows.
I think Solo: A Star Wars Story will find an audience on cable and home video. It’s the first Star Wars movie made in the mold of the original trilogy since, well, the original trilogy. The film may have had troubles behind the camera and at the box office, but on screen it’s all pulled together into a cohesive story that answers more than a few burning questions about the past of the scoundrel space smuggler we all love — Han Solo.
The question remains, will “Solo: A Star Wars Story” get a sequel? The main characters are signed up for multi-picture deals, the movie does end on a cliff hanger with Qi’ra off to meet with Maul, and there’s a lot of territory between the end of the movie and Solo and Chewie’s appearance in “Star Wars: A New Hope.” I, for one, would like to see more stories about the early days of Han Solo and Chewbacca. So, download the movie or buy the Blu-Ray / DVD (Pre-order it via ShopDisney and get a free Lithograph set). Let’s make the sequel happen.