Alexander Koerner/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) — Woody Harrelson has officially stepped into that galaxy far, far away. Lucasfilm has confirmed the Oscar-nominated actor has joined the cast of the second “anthology” Star Wars film, this one centering on a young Han Solo.
Alden Ehrenreich is stepping into Harrison Ford’s boots as a younger version of the smuggler and space pirate, while newly-minted Golden Globe winner Donald Glover will play a young version of Billy Dee Williams’ suave scoundrel Lando Calrissian. Game of Thrones‘ Emilia Clarke will also appear in a still-to-be-announced role.
It is rumored that Harrelson will be playing a mentor of sorts to the young Solo, who was orphaned at an early age and became a pickpocket before winning his prized ship, the Millennium Falcon, from Lando in a dice game. Of course, he eventually became a general in the Rebel Alliance.
“We couldn’t be more excited to work with an artist with as much depth and range as Woody,” the film’s directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller said in a statement posted on StarWars.com. “His ability to find both humor and pathos, often in the same role, is truly unique. He is also very good at ping pong.”
The Han Solo stand-alone film will hit theaters in 2018.
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