Han Solo Movie Script Praised by Star Wars Expert

Artist Iain McCaig has read the initial draft of the Young Han Solo spinoff, calling it the best Star Wars script ever.

There is a lot of hype building for some of the future films in the Star Wars franchise lately. After a brief bit of concern over massive reshoots for Rogue One, fans are now very excited after a bunch of new details came out, including the confirmation of Darth Vader for the movie. But Disney has other spinoff movies planned, and after Rogue One, it will be everyone's favorite scruffy nerf herder Han Solo who is getting a solo movie. Now, the initial script for Han Solo: A Star Wars Story is getting high praise from a trusted source. And that source just so happens to be an expert on all things Star Wars.

We know relatively little about the upcoming, untitled Young Han Solo movie, but thanks to a recent report from Star Wars News Net, we get a bit of a window into what we might be able to expect in terms of quality. Speaking at an art and industry conference in New Zealand recently, The Force Awakens concept artist Iain McCaig revealed that he has read the script for the Han Solo spinoff movie, and that he thinks it is really amazing. The article doesn't feature a direct quote, but here is what the report has to say about McCaig's feelings on the script.

"'By far the best Star Wars script, and one of the best scripts period, that I have ever read. I laughed, I cried, I did all the things you should do when reading a good script. You're in for a treat.'"

Lawrence Kasdan, whose Star Wars history dates back to writing the screenplay for The Empire Strikes Back, wrote the script for the Young Han Solo movie, which should lend some credibility to McCaig's praise. Kasdan was also brought on board to help J.J. Abrams rework the initial draft of The Force Awakens, which was done by Michael Arndt. Interestingly enough, Kasdan reportedly wrote the initial script for the Han Solo spinoff movie even before he made his contribution to The Force Awakens.
McCaig has been a member of the Star Wars family for quite some time, and had a very good working relationship with George Lucas, before he sold off Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012. McCaig was a concept artist on all three of the prequel movies as well as The Force Awakens, and has a good relationship with Disney currently, as he did some of the concept art for the very successful live-action adaptation of The Jungle Book. That being the case, it isn't likely that he would say anything negative about the script for the Han Solo movie, but he didn't necessarily have to be so overly positive either.
We don't know a whole lot else about the Young Han Solo Star Wars movie, but we know a small handful of essential details. For one, Hail Caesar! standout Alden Ehrenreich has been cast in the title role, taking over duties for Harrison Ford who is obviously a bit too old to play a young version of himself. We also know that The LEGO Movie directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller are the ones who have been chosen to helm this standalone movie. With those pieces in place and McCaig's comments, it is still early, but we may be able to start getting our hopes about about this movie. The Young Han Solo movie is currently set for a May 25, 2018 release date.

Rogue One May Not Have Star Wars Opening Crawl

 Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy reveals that the Star Wars spinoffs may abandoned the opening story crawl for something that is more unique.

If you are a Star Wars fan, things are pretty great right right now. Disney has successfully breathed new life into the franchise after the disappointment of the prequel trilogy, with The Force Awakens being very well received and absolutely crushing it at the box office. Next up for the studio is Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and it will be the very first spin off movie in the Star Wars universe. That being the case, it looks like it may be missing a very iconic element of the Star Wars franchise.

In the recent massive EW feature on Rogue One, many new details about the movie were revealed. One particular thing of note that came up in the report was that Rogue One may not feature the classic text crawl during the opening of the movie. Here is what Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy had to say about the prospect of a text crawl when asked about it.

"We talk about that all the time. It's something that we're right in the midst of discussing even now, so I don't want to say definitively what we're doing. The crawl and some of those elements live so specifically within the 'saga' films that we are having a lot of discussion about what will define the [stand-alone] Star Wars Stories separate and apart from the saga films. So we're right in the middle of talking about that."

Every one of the seven Star Wars movies that have been released have featured the classic text crawl, which helps to set up the story and typically leads into a big, action set piece. Rogue One will be the first non "saga" Star Wars movie, as Kennedy pointed out, and Disney needs to do a few things to make those movies stand out, as they have several of them planned for the future. The text crawl is one of the most distinct elements of a Star Wars movie though, so it would be a pretty bold movie for Disney to opt out of doing one for Rogue One.
The decision to do or to not do a text crawl for Rogue One will probably come a little bit later, as Kennedy and the studio currently have bigger fish to fry. Prior to the EW feature, there was a lot of concern over reshoots that are currently underway for the movie. Reports surfaced that as much as fifty-percent of the Gareth Edwards movie needed to be reshot, but during the course of the EW feature, Kennedy tried to downplay the severity of what is going on with the reshoots.

"There's nothing about the story that's changing, with a few things that we're picking up in additional photography. I think that's the most important thing, to reassure fans that it's the movie we intended to make."

Rogue One is taking place during the time period between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope and follows the story of a band of Rebels who are tasked with stealing the plans for the Death Star. The reshoots are currently underway, but with recent confirmation that Darth Vader is indeed going to be in the movie and lots more details courtesy of EW, people seem to be much more excited than they are worried. Rogue One will be a very different kind of Star Wars movie, and if they decide to not go with a text crawl, it will be very interesting to see how they open the movie. Rogue one: A Star Wars Story is set for December 16 release.

Star Wars creator George Lucas scraps plans to build his $700m museum in Chicago and is now focusing on a California location 

For George Lucas, Chicago might as well be a galaxy far, far away.

The Star Wars creator invented an entire sci-fi universe and multibillion-dollar empire. But he could not manage to build his legacy museum in the US city.

Thwarted by local politics, the 72-year-old filmmaker said Friday that the Lucas Museum Of Narrative Art would now be built somewhere in California.

Done: George Lucas will not build his museum in Chicago, it was revealed on Friday; here he is seen in December in Washington DC

Plan V: Thwarted by local politics, the 72-year-old filmmaker said Friday that the Lucas Museum Of Narrative Art would now be built somewhere in California

Lucas had planned to spend some $700 million of his own fortune to build the museum on prime real estate along Lake Michigan, which the city offered to lease for 99 years at a price of $10.

That plan, which would have seen the museum replace a parking lot, went awry soon after it was announced in 2014 when a local preservation group sued to prevent construction.

The group contended that the museum, which would have replaced a parking lot, should be built at another site away from the lakefront, which is considered land reserved for public use.

Lucas on Friday strongly criticized the group's stance.

The details: Lucas had planned to spend some $700 million of his own fortune to build the museum on prime real estate along Lake Michigan, which the city offered to lease for 99 years at a price of $10; here Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill are seen in 1977's Star Wars

Hiccup: That plan, which would have seen the museum replace a parking lot, went awry soon after it was announced in 2014 when a local preservation group sued to prevent construction

'No one benefits from continuing their seemingly unending litigation to protect a parking lot,' he said in a statement.

The filmmaker had hoped to display his formidable art collection that focuses on narrative forms such as comic art, photography, film, and magazine illustrations, as well as "Star Wars" memorabilia.

The museum also would have included his collection of paintings by Norman Rockwell - the celebrated 20th century master illustrator of everyday American life.

But plans were stopped in their tracks when US District Judge John Darrah refused to dismiss the case against Lucas, saying there was a persuasive argument that the proposed museum would "impair public interest in the land."

A legend: The filmmaker had hoped to display his formidable art collection that focuses on narrative forms such as comic art, photography, film, and magazine illustrations, as well as "Star Wars" memorabilia; here he is seen in 2005

Attempts to negotiate between the parties soon thereafter stalled.

Within minutes of Lucas' announcement Friday, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel lamented the loss of 'a gift worth approximately $1.5 billion.'

'Chicago's loss will be another city's gain,' Emanuel said in a statement. 'This missed opportunity has not only cost us what will be a world-class cultural institution, it has cost thousands of jobs for Chicago workers, millions of dollars in economic investment and countless educational opportunities for Chicago's youth.'

Sad turnout: Within minutes of Lucas' announcement Friday, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel lamented the loss of 'a gift worth approximately $1.5 billion'; here Lucas is seen with wife Mellody Hobson in December

Juanita Irizarry, executive director of Friends of the Parks, the group that brought the suit, reiterated that point.

"It is unfortunate that the Lucas Museum has made the decision to leave Chicago rather than locate the museum on one of the several alternative sites that are not on Chicago's lakefront," Irizarry said.

The lakefront was supposed to have been one of the museum's key draws, putting it in close proximity to other institutions with which it hoped to collaborate, including the Art Institute of Chicago.

Lucas' previous efforts to build the museum on federal parkland in San Francisco also failed.

 

 

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This Star Wars Perfume Will Let You Smell Like Queen Amidala

Also available in Jedi and Empire scents

If you’ve ever had a strong desire to smell like Queen Amidala or Luke Skywalker, have no fear because Star Wars-themed fragrances are coming soon to a galaxy near you. Thanks to Lifestyle Perfumes, you can have the force with you in lightsaber-inspired bottles that house three different scents — two men’s colognes and a women’s perfume.
The colognes are named “Empire” and “Jedi;” “Empire” is for the bad boys of the galaxy, supposedly evoking “an aura of masculinity and power” as well as the “dark side of the Force” while “Jedi” captures “swaggering, fearless flair” with “sensual notes of musk and sandalwood.”
The women’s perfume is called “Amidala” and was inspired by the Queen of Naboo’s “royal elegance as well as her strong indomitable will,” and like any galactic woman will appreciate, the fragrance has a “sovereign seductive aura for any situation by day and by night.”
Unfortunately the perfumes are only available in Europe, so unless you’re planning on hopping the pond, you can satisfy yourself with reading about the fragrances (and their very detailed descriptions) on the Lifestyle site.

 

Star Wars toy collection auction contains 'Holy Grail' pieces and could fetch half a million pounds

Private assortment of toys from Europe are to go on sale at Thornaby auction house Vectis

Items up for auction

A collection of Star Wars toys, described as the best ever to come up for public auction, could fetch half a million pounds when it goes on sale on Teesside.
The private assortment from Europe is said to contain some of the “Holy Grail” pieces for fans of the famous film franchise.
Vectis Auctions, in Thornaby , said the star piece is a prototype rocket-firing Boba Fett, which has an estimate of £15,000-20,000.
In total it is thought the collection could fetch around £500,000.
Kathy Taylor, a valuer at the auction house, said: “This collection is one of the best in the world and the Boba Fett toy is one of the rarest Star Wars figures.

Prototype rocket-firing Boba Fett, which has an estimate of £15,000-20,000

“The collector sent me an email and when we read through the list it was quite amazing to see what he had.
“We sent him a valuation and he came back to us and said yes please, so we went across to Europe to get it ourselves.”
The collection, which will go on sale from July 19-20 and also includes a Charcoal Anakin Skywalker first shot figure, has previously been displayed in a museum.

Items up for auction

Items up for auction

Previous sales at the auction house saw 3,000 toy cars, trucks and trains built up over 50 years sold for £227,000, and boxes of unsold and unwanted Action Man and Star Wars toys that lay untouched in a retired salesman’s garage for decades for £180,000.

¡VAN A VOLVER A GRABAR LA MITAD DE STAR WARS: ROGUE ONE!

¡VAN A VOLVER A GRABAR LA MITAD DE STAR WARS: ROGUE ONE!

Por lo general, los fans están bastante indignados tras los comentarios sobre que hay que modificar la película por que "parece una película de guerra", ya que esa era la idea original, hacer algo de tono más bélico.

No obstante es de suponer que, como películas de guerra hay de muchas clases, de El Pianista a El Puente sobre el Rio Kwai, se refieren a los comentarios a que les ha quedado demasiado oscura, y en general, lejana del tono de Star Wars.

Una serie de artículos van aclarando aspectos del problema, con mayor o menos claridad: Aquí por ejemplo citan la frase de Gareth Edwards sobre el tema de la película: "about the fact that God's not coming to save us, and we're on our own."

Bueno, al menos en las películas de Star Wars que yo he visto, "Dios" si llega para salvar a los protragonistas, anque lo haga bajo el nombre de La Fuerza.

Además destacan que de fallar este primer spin-off todos los demás estarían en peligro, obviamente.

En este otro las cosas quedan ya más claritas: Resulta que han ido grabando sin tener un guión FINAL, por lo que cuando este ha sido terminado por McQuarrie, tiene mejores ideas que las de la película ya grabada.

Así que ahora HAY QUE DESCARTAR EL 40%, osea, que lo único que vale son los planos de la Estrella de la Muerte en el Espacio y las letras del principio, je, je...

Van a RECONSTRUIR 32 sets y estarán DOS MESES grabando.

Cosas como esta pasan cuando los guionistas van por detrás de los directores...

Sin embargo, este otro artículo niega la intervención directa de McQuarrie, aunque si habla de su contribución.

El caso es que parece que lo que se va a grabar son escenas que desarrollen los personajes, no tanto como cambios de argumento o reproducción de batallas.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Reshoots Confirmed

Disney is forcing director Gareth Edwards to do reshoots, though there never were any test screenings that sent Disney into a panic.

Earlier today it was reported that Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was undergoing extensive and very expensive reshoots after a few disastrous test screenings sent Disney into a panic. That report was only partially true. There never were any test screenings. And Disney isn't worried about the overall structure of the movie. But there will be reshoots, which are common place in the Hollywood studio system.

Just a few years ago, news of reshoots were an immediate cause for alarm. But Disney has made them common practice, as they want the best product possible. All of the recent Marvel movies have reshoots built into their production schedule. And The Force Awakens under went reshoots before its release this past December. According to Disney and Lucasfilm, this is all business as usual.
The initial report claimed that Disney executives were extremely worried about Rogue One after the movie failed to test well. That has been clarified. At this time, according to Deadline, only Disney's top brass have seen the movie. The story, which follows a group of Rebels on a mission to steal plans to the first Death Star, is said to be much darker this time around.
Gareth Edwards, best known for Monsters and Godzilla, is directing the movie, and it was stated by an insider close to the studio that he has been very strict about studio interference. But there is a lot riding on the movie, especially with it set to launch a new franchise of Anthology films, which will be followed in 2018 by Han Solo: A Star Wars Story. The Disney suits decided that, after watching the entire first cut of the film, some big changes needed to be made.
While the reshoots are reportedly lasting for four weeks over the course of this summer, Rogue One will not be delayed and is still set for a December 16 release date. The first cut is said to be 'lacking the edge that Force Awakens had' and the 'story needs to jell'. The hope is that Rogue One will still be able to put in an appearance at this year's San Diego Comic-Con. And the first spinoff is the centerpiece of this year's Star Wars Celebration taking place this July in the UK.
This latest report goes onto state that Alden Ehrenreich may make a Han Solo cameo that is being compared to Luke Skywalker's one-minute appearance in The Force Awakens, but this has not been confirmed. The actor was hired for the role after Rogue One wrapped, and this could be part of the reshoots. The movie stars Felicity Jones, Ben Mendelsohn, Forest Whitaker and Mads Mikkelsen in the leads. And Darth Vader is confirmed to show up at some point, though it isn't known how large of a role the iconic villain will actually have.
The Force Awakens is said to have required about three weeks of reshoots, which matches Rogue One. That movie went onto earn an astounding $2.07 billion at the worldwide box office. Disney and LucasFilm aren't in crisis mode, according to this latest report. They are just moving forward with what they believe will be the best version of the movie.

Carrie Fisher comes face to face with her Star Wars character Princess Leia at Madame Tussauds in London 

She will forever be known as the iconic character Princess Leia from Star Wars.

And almost 40 years on from the first film, Carrie Fisher still bore a startling resemblance to the young princess from Alderaan, who has been recreated as a waxwork.

The 59-year-old actress came face to face with her former character at Madame Tussauds in London on Tuesday.

Scroll down for video 

Double take: Almost 40 years on from the first film, Carrie Fisher still bore a startling resemblance to the young Princess Leia from Star Wars, who has been recreated as a waxwork

Accompanied by her pet pooch Gary, Carrie was snapped next to a scene from the 1983 film, Return of the Jedi, which sees the member of the Imperial Senate enslaved by Jabba the Hutt.

The Hutt's throne room is faithfully recreated by Madame Tussauds and also features the sadistic court jester, Salacious B. Crumb.

For the reunion Carrie wore an all black ensemble - a sharp contrast to Princess Leia's classic gold bikini she was forced to wear while chained to Jabba.

The actress reprised her role in last year's acclaimed reboot to the series - Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens - with Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill, after a 32 year break.

Striking: The 59-year-old actress came face to face with her former character at Madame Tussauds in London on Tuesday

Realistic: Accompanied by her pet pooch Gary, Carrie was snapped next to a scene from the 1983 film, Return of the Jedi, which sees the member of the Imperial Senate enslaved by Jabba the Hutt

And Carrie will again play a leading role in the upcoming movie Star Wars: Episode VIII as General Leia Organa.

Filming has already begun in Ireland for the hotly anticipated new instalment, and a release date is scheduled for 2017. 

 

 

 

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