Photo Credit: Lucasfilm
Star Wars Insider magazine reveals full character descriptions for all of the main characters of Solo: A Star Wars Story, featuring Han Solo.
Solo: A Star Wars Story is nearly one month away. Let that sink in Star Wars fans. We are receiving a new Star Wars movie next month. Get excited. Get very excited. What a time to be alive!
Han Solo is a walking legend by the time we meet up with him Star Wars: A New Hope, with that very legend growing even further by the time Rey and Finn meet him in Star Wars: The Force Awakens 30 years later within the Star Wars canon timeline.
Holding us over in the meantime until the film’s release, Star Wars Insider magazine released descriptions for all of the main character for Solo: A Star Wars Story. The main cast is a star-studded one, which is very promising.
- Alden Ehrenreich as the smuggler and scruffy nerf herder: Han Solo
- Donald Glover as the smooth and stylish: Landon Calrissian
- Woody Harrelson as Han Solo’s mentor: Tobias Beckett
- Emilia Clark (Game of Thrones) as Han Solo’s childhood friend: Qi’Ra
- Paul Bettany as the main villain Solo: A Star Wars Story: Dryden Vos
- Thandie Newton (Westworld) as the calm, cool, and collected: Val
- Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Amazon’s Fleabag) as Lando’s sarcastic droid: L3-37
- Joonas Suotamo as the “mighty” Chewbacca
- Ian Kenny (Game of Thrones) in an unnamed role
Let’s dive into these characters from Solo: A Star Wars Story, who you better get familiar with before the film drops in May. Thanks to StarWarsNewsNet.com for providing us with the character descriptions. We are most grateful.
Photo Credit: Lucasfilm
Val: Played by Thandie Newton
"A member of Tobias Beckett’s criminal crew, the occasionally prickly Val is cool and self-assured without being flashy. Measured and methodical, she is a crack shot with a blaster rifle, and the most even-headed and capable member of the ragtag gang of rogues Beckett has recruited to undertake a foolhardy escapade in search of riches on the muddy battlefields of Mimban."
The more I learn about Val, the more I am looking forward to seeing her in action in Solo: A Star Wars Story. She gives a Trinity from the Matrix sort of vibe, which is a tremendous compliment.
Having a crack shot and someone quick with a blaster comes in handy when you’re infiltrating places under Imperial control. It appears that Val is neutral, probably doing this job to put food on the table.
"When she first meets Han, Val is far from impressed with the young Corellian, lacking faith and skeptical of his self-professed skills as a pilot."
Val is in for a rude awakening, with Han Solo being one of the best pilots within the galaxy — which we will see like never before in Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Photo Credit: Lucasfilm
L3-37: Played by Phoebe Waller-Bridge
"A “self-made droid”, L3-37 has cobbled herself together using an assortment of components from astromechs, protocol droids, and countless other robotic sources, devising her own form and function to become something quite unique – with an impressive AI to match."
L3 seems to have a K-2SO like vibe to her and sounds a lot like Captain Phasma for some reason. As long as Ron Howard and company don’t make her a carbon copy female version of the droid from Rogue One, I’m totally on board.
"L3-37 is Lando Calrissian’s enlightened navigator and co-pilot. Her programming makes for an indignant, spirited and somewhat eccentric companion, who cares deeply about droid rights. With a mind of her own (after all, she built it) L3-37 is subservient to no one."
We get a taste of this relationship in the Han Solo prequel/sequel combo novel Last Shot, but I’m eager to see this dynamic duo together on screen.
Photo Credit: Lucasfilm
Enfys Nest
"“Enfys Nest is a female. It is not a big role, but it is important. She (the actress) worked closely with Woody Harrelson. She is signed for two more movies, presumably Solo sequels.”"
We’ve received conflicting reports on whether Enfys Nest is male or female, but does it matter? Well, unless “she” turns out to be Q’ira in disguise. We know that this character is a total gunslinger and will have a showdown with Han Solo. Sign me up!
Photo Credit: Lucasfilm
Tobias Beckett: Played by Woody Harrelson
"Tobias Beckett is someone who certainly had an influence on Han in his early years before audiences first met the space pilot in a hoodlum-filled cantina on Tatooine. Beckett is a seasoned, no-nonsense survivor, forever working the angles to make sure he always comes out ahead of the game. Sound familiar?"
Right away, we learn that Han Solo adopts Tobias Beckett’s style of living. I’m calling it now, but I bet Tobias Beckett doesn’t make it out of the film alive, which will undoubtedly leave a lasting impact on the young Han Solo — especially if Beckett is betrayed by someone within his crew.
"Beckett has assembled a team of specialized scoundrels to carry out a series of risky but profitable heists, and when he needs some extra hands for one particular job, he allows young Han and his Wookiee partner-in-crime, Chewbacca, to tag along."
It’s clear that this heist Tobias Beckett is putting together is not his first rodeo and sounds like he would fit right in with the Oceans 11 crew.
"If it comes down to a fight, Beckett is as happy to take on his enemies in hand-to-hand combat as he is to blast them to smithereens, using the pair of mismatched blasters that are never far from his side."
Tobias Beckett is much like Han Solo when we meet him in the first Star Wars film A New Hope. It appears Han Solo becomes Tobias Beckett 2.0 until he meets a certain farmboy, Princess, and crazy old hermit — who change his life forever.
Photo Credit: Lucasfilm
Q’ira: Played by Emilia Clarke
"As a child Qi’ra was just another powerless street urchin, making her way as best she could on the grim thoroughfares of Corellia. Running with a street kid named Han, she was determined to move up in the world and gain status and reputation. As she got older, Qi’ra had grown into an independent young woman – clever and calculating, with a sophisticated edge and a knack for devious skullduggery."
Even though they grow up and become childhood friends, Q’ira and Han Solo’s lives take entirely different paths once they grow up. That’s crystal clear within the narration of the Solo: A Star Wars Story trailer, where she calls Han Solo “rough around the edges.”
"Qi’ra is a secretive woman of the shadows, but who she really is is hidden away, and visible only to those she trusts. When her path crosses with Han’s once again, Qi’ra is destined to become an influential force in the life of the young smuggler."
The final part of Q’ira’s description is a bit cryptic but leaves the door open for her potentially being the woman behind the mask of Enfys Nest. At the very least, Q’ira will spark up some memories of a past that he longs to forget, which will create a bit of emotional depth within Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Han Solo: Played Alden Ehrenreich
Photo Credit: Lucasfilm
Last, and certainly not least, the man, the myth, the legend behind Solo: A Star Wars Story; Han Solo himself.
"Times are tough under Imperial rule, with planets across the galaxy feeling the pressure of the Emperor’s iron grip. One such world that has seen better days is Corellia, transformed by the Galactic Empire into one of its principle starship production facilities, it’s famous shipyards now churning out TIE fighters, Star Destroyers and many other weapons of Imperial domination."
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Off the bat, we get a taste of Han Solo’s homeworld. I always imagined Corellia to be a place much like Alderaan, Canto Bight, or someplace glorious. That may be true for certain aspects of the world, but it appears that it’s a dark and dire place — which is what happens when an area is under Imperial control.
"To survive the harsh reality that has befallen his homeworld, a young street thief named Han spends his days running scams while working for a notorious Corellian gang, stealing what he can and cutting deals on behalf of his ill-tempered crime boss. Han is unrefined, reckless, and continuously getting himself into scrapes – then improvising his way out of them."
Improvision. Does that sound familiar and much like the Han Solo we all know and love?
"Never one to plan too far ahead, Han goes where opportunity calls. Determined to become “the best pilot in the galaxy”, he enlists in the Imperial navy only to find himself kicked out of the flight academy for “having a mind of his own”."
It appears this mind of his own gets Han Solo into a few Imperial entanglements and trouble, but also later leads to a life of heroism and sacrifice.
"But he’s about to meet a charismatic rogue named Tobias Beckett, a man who will have an enormous impact on the kind of person Han is destined to become."
Maybe, Tobias Beckett turns out to be a man of real character, and Han Solo wants to stay away from a life of sacrifice. It’s more likely that Tobias Beckett is more like we mentioned before — a man who does what it takes to survive at all costs. One that rides “Solo.”
Next: Solo Roundup: Runtime, cameos, HD images, more!
These descriptions shine a bit more light on the characters of Solo: A Star Wars Story, without giving too much away. Is it Memorial Day yet?
Solo A Star Wars Story debuts May 25, 2018, worldwide.