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Solo: A Star Wars Story: Why we’re excited to see Donald Glover as Lando

By Josh Fitzgibbons

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Photo Credit: Lucasfilm

A new Han Solo isn’t the only casting change Star Wars fans are going to have to buy into for Solo: A Star Wars Story to win over our hearts and minds. Donald Glover is ready to step into the boots of Lando Calrissian, the smoothest swindler in the galaxy.

We got our first real glimpse of Donald Glover as a pre-Empire Strikes Back Lando Calrissian in the official teaser for Solo: A Star Wars Story. Entertainment Weekly gave us not only more images from the film but also an inside look at Glover’s treatment of the iconic character through an in-depth interview with the actor.

Glover seemed to have brought an even balance of excitement and respect to the role of Lando when he arrived on set. Harrison Ford wasn’t the only Original Trilogy actor to lend his input to Solo: A Star Wars Story. Glover told Entertainment Weekly that he got to pick the one-and-only Billy Dee Williams’ brain concerning Lando:

"I’m interested in what you were able to discover from Billy Dee Williams when you met with him. What was it like with two Landos getting together?Donald Glover: It was really, really relaxed. He was great. I mean, I had a lot of questions. And then he just told me, just be charming. [Laughs] And so, I was like, “Okay!” I just kind of did that. He said, “Just be interested in things.” Lando has, I wouldn’t say eccentric, but eclectic tastes. So I tried to work that into the role as much as possible."

In true Billy Dee fashion, Williams told Glover to “just be charming.” What else would you expect from the smoothest swindler in the galaxy? It seems oversimplified, but Williams’ advice was likely welcomed by Glover, who, at the time, was just beginning to embark on his journey to a galaxy far, far away.

Photo Credit: Lucasfilm

Donald Glover expresses his love for Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

Glover went on to explain his love for Phoebe Waller-Bridge and her character, L3-37, the newest droid to be introduced to Star Wars fans.

"In the film, you’re paired with Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character, L3-37, how would you describe their relationship? I think they are both kind of self-made, and they get each other that way. It’s lovingly contentious. I don’t know if me and Phoebe were like this because I just love her. Being in a movie with her is kind of a blessing I didn’t even know I wanted. But she also is so smart she calls me out on it. It’s just cool to have somebody like that around, you know? Really funny and really honest."

As Star Wars fans, we love droids. R2-D2 and C-3PO may be the most beloved duo in cinematic history. K-2SO and Cassian Andor’s sarcastic friendship in Rogue One is one of that film’s strong-points. Hopefully, Glover and Waller-Bridge’s real-life chemistry translates to the silver screen and we get another remarkable droid-human friendship.

Solo looks to reintroduce the Millennium Falcon, the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy, to the silver screen, and Glover’s real-life yearning for the ship may exceed even Lando Calrissian or Han Solo’s love for the iconic space vessel.

We all know Han Solo loves his ship, the Millennium Falcon. But before it was his ship, it was Lando’s. Solo will showcase the iconic ship in all of its glory when it was a little less junky. In fact, the more pristine Millennium Falcon tells us a bit about Lando as a character. Glover explains:

"We see the Millennium Falcon under Lando’s ownership and it is a very different looking ship. What do you think the Falcon reveals about who Lando is? He’s a very particular person with particular tastes and he likes the comforts of life. I would live in it right now, to be honest! [Laughs] In between takes, they’d be like, “Okay, we are going to set up for the next shot , so you can go sit in your chair or whatever,” and I’d be like, “Actually I’ll just stay in Lando’s room.” It was that nice! I would just lay in his bed and read a book or write something because it is very comfortable. I think he likes to be comfortable. He’s not a cowboy kind of guy."

Lando is definitely a charmer, and just look at how charming the Falcon looked before Han Solo got his grubby smuggler hands all over it.

It’s certainly going to be interesting to see how the Falcon gets so dirty between Solo and A New Hope. Maybe the Kessel Run causes internal yellowing…

By the way, we’re also getting sabacc, the Star Wars version of poker

"Yeah, we are playing a game of sabacc."

*Insert Mic Drop*

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All of the above points have us feeling nostalgic and very excited to see Donald Glover portray Lando Calrissian. But what will Glover bring to the character to make him feel fresh? When asked how he made Lando his own, Glover responded:

"I always like seeing younger characters when they are in younger times because it tells a lot about how they got to where they are. Like, when I was a teenager I felt like I knew a lot, but I didn’t. By the time we meet him in Empire Strikes Back, he owns the city already. [Laughs] So, I wanted to show the person he was before that was even possible. Like, I don’t even know if he thought that was possible at the time."

We can’t wait to see Lando Calrissian on the big screen again when Solo: A Star Wars Story hits theaters on May 25th.

Next: Solo received Harrison Ford’s input

Solo: A Star Wars Story hits theatres May 25, 2018, worldwide.

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