Michael K. Williams' Role Cut From ‘Han Solo’ Movie During Reshoots
Michael K. Williamshas been cut from theHan Solomovie amid reshoots with new directorRon Howard.The Emmy nominee forThe Night OfandThe Wirealum was a last-minute addition to theStar Warsstandalone movie, with his casting announcement only being revealed in March of this year.
However, Williams could not accommodate the reshoots schedule currently being overseen by Howard, who stepped in after original directorsPhil LordandChristopher Millerleft the project. This resulted in his character being cut altogether.
Deadlinereports that Williams' schedule for the spy dramaThe Red Sea Diving Resort,his movie shooting in South Africa with Ben Kingsley, conflicted with the reshoots forHan Solothat are currently underway. Williams told Deadline:
There’s not much information about what character Williams was playing, or how much he would factor into the film. Williams did say he was playing a half-human, half-animal character — presumably an alien — who was “a kick-ass character, in my opinion. I’m proud of it.”
Considering the last-minute casting of Williams when Lord and Miller were still helming the film and that fact that he’s been cut rather than recast, this sounds like it was a very minor character — perhaps one of a more comic natureconsidering the reasonsthat Lord and Miller were fired in June this year (coughAce VenturaHan cough). Or it may be similar to the case of Forest Whitaker’s character inRogue One, who the filmmakers built up to be someone of import, only for him to be sidelined early on in the movie.
Still, Williams was a prestigious piece of casting for theStar Warsprequel, which features the lesser-known actorAlden Ehrenreichin the lead — though it does boast recognizable actors likeEmilia Clarke,Donald Glover, and Oscar nomineeWoody Harrelsonin key roles.
Williams did seem a bit sore that he would no longer be in theHan Solomovie, though he didn’t rule out returning to theStar Warsuniverse at some point:
“I left with a very good taste in my mouth about the whole family, and I hope that I left a good taste in their mouth. They’re a great group of people, the Lucas family.”
Interestingly, Williams seemed to hold onto a loyalty to the directors who hired him, Lord and Miller, saying quite cryptically about his character being cut, “I felt great about what I created with the directors that I worked with. It is what it is.”
The untitled Han Solo movie is still scheduled to arrive onMay 25, 2018.
