‘Star Wars’ Officially Announces New Han Solo and Chewbacca Comics Series

Posted on by Mathew Corn Uncategorized

Via InsideTheMagic.net

Han Solo and Chewbacca are one of the most popular duos in cinema history. Starring in multiple movies across the Star Wars franchise, the characters will next appear in a brand new series from Marvel Comics, simply called “Han Solo & Chewbacca”.

Harrison Ford first brought Han Solo into the pop culture lexicon in George Lucas’ Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope (1977) alongside Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia Organa), and his on-screen sidekick, Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca). Han Solo and Chewbacca soon rose to fan-favorite status with their following appearances as part of the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Star Wars: Episode VI — Return of the Jedi (1983), making up Lucas’ original trilogy.

star wars millennium falcon cockpit with (left to right) chewbacca, c-3po, princess leia, and han solo

The Indiana Jones actor was back as Han Solo with Mayhew sharing the role of the loveable Wookiee with Joonas Suotamo and Ian Whyte for Star Wars: Episode VII — The Force Awakens (2015) — the first movie in Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy’s Star Wars sequel trilogy. As well as returning cast members Hamill and Fisher, Ford and Mayhew were also joined by newcomers Daisy Ridley (Rey), Adam Driver (Ben Solo AKA Kylo Ren), Oscar Isaac (Poe Dameron), and John Boyega (Finn).

han solo (left) and kylo ren (right)

With cameo appearances in the remainder of the sequel trilogy, it would be Alden Ehrenreich who delivered Han Solo’s origin story for the galaxy far, far away. Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) had an underwhelming performance at the box office despite the movie’s stellar cast — which included Emilia Clarke (Qi’ra), Paul Bettany (Dryden Vos), Donald Glover (Lando Calrissian), and Woody Harrelson (Tobias Beckett) — and its setup of future events involving Maul (Ray Park) and his crime syndicate, Crimson Dawn.

Despite rumors that a new Han Solo project featuring 79-year-old Harrison Ford is in the works for the Star Wars universe, nothing involving the famous duo has been confirmed. Until now.

han solo

StarWars.com has revealed that a new series featuring the Millennium Falcon pilots will release next year:

Han Solo & Chewbacca, a new series from Marvel, will launch in March 2022, StarWars.com can exclusively reveal. Written by Marc Guggenheim and pencilled by David Messina, the monthly comic follows Han and Chewie a few years before the events of Star Wars: A New Hope, as the duo teams up with Greedo — in better times, apparently — on a heist for Jabba the Hutt.

Chewbacca and Han Solo

Speaking to the writer, Marc Guggenheim, it is confirmed how this new Star Wars project will tackle the cinematic space smuggler and how he has always bordered the line between cynic and hopeless romantic:

You might think that that inner conflict didn’t present itself until the end of Episode IV, when Han returns to help Luke destroy the Death Star, but it’s already on full display at the end of Solo: A Star Wars Story, which, of course, predates Episode IV. So one of the things I’ve been playing with is the tension between the “hopeless romantic” Han reveals himself to be at the end of Solo and the hard-bitten cynic we meet in Episode IV. To be very reductive about it, I’ve searched for opportunities to force Han to choose between his lesser and greater angels.

han and greedo mos eisley cantina

Guggenheim continues to tease what’s to come from the series:

In the first issue, Jabba the Hutt gives them what should be an easy job: Steal something and bring it back to him. But the job turns out to be anything but easy as everything that can go wrong promptly does.

He also comments on how he plans to leave each issue with a cliffhanger and that the last page of issue one “will have people talking”. If there’s one thing that Star Wars is good at is getting people talking. We have seen time and time again, Lucasfilm’s leading franchise draw polarizing opinions such as with the release of Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi (2017) from director Rian Johnson.

rey the last jedi on ahch-to

This will be the first-ever Han Solo and Chewbacca series and promises to expand on the “animosity” between Solo and Greedo, as well as introduce new characters such as a Marshal — a “corporate equivalent of a bounty hunter”. Star Wars has continued to explore the wider galaxy surrounding its movies and TV shows with comic series’ like “War of the Bounty Hunters” and “Darth Vader”.

In terms of live-action, next to debut in the Star Wars saga is The Book of Boba Fett from showrunner Robert Rodriguez and starring Temuera Morrison (Boba Fett) and Ming-Na Wen (Fennec Shand).

Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) Passes at Age 74

Posted on by Mathew Corn Uncategorized

Peter Mayhew, the actor best known for playing the character Chewbacca in the “Star Wars” movie series, died on Tuesday, his family announced on his Twitter page. He was 74 years old.

Mayhew’s cause of death is unclear at this time.

“The family of Peter Mayhew, with deep love and sadness, regrets to share the news that Peter has passed away. He left us the evening of April 30, 2019 with his family by his side in his North Texas home,” the tweet posted on Thursday said.

“He fought his way back from being wheelchair-bound to stand tall and portray Chewbacca once more in Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” the family said, adding that Mayhew served as a consultant for “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” in order to “teach his successor.”

“He put his heart and soul into the role of Chewbacca and it showed in every frame of the films from his knock kneed running, firing his bowcaster from the hip, his bright blue eyes, down to each subtle movement of his head and mouth,” the statement said. “But, to him, the Star Wars family meant so much more to him than a role in a film.”

A native of London, the 7-foot-3 Mayhew played Chewbacca, sidekick to Han Solo, in the original Star Wars trilogy. He resumed the role in two more installments, Revenge of the Sith in 2005 and The Force Awakens in 2015.

Mayhew used his fame in support of several nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping veterans and families and children in need. His Peter Mayhew Foundation was dedicated to “the alleviation of pain, disease and suffering,” by supporting other charitable organizations.

Tweets from co-stars have poured in since his passing.

Mark Hamill:

“He was the gentlest of giants-A big man with an even bigger heart who never failed to make me smile & a loyal friend who I loved dearly-I’m grateful for the memories we shared & I’m a better man for just having known him. Thanks Pete #RIPPeterMayhew#Heartbroken”

Harrison Ford:

“Peter Mayhew was a kind and gentle man, possessed of great dignity and noble character. These aspects of his own personality, plus his wit and grace, he brought to Chewbacca. We were partners in film and friends in life for over 30 years and I loved him. He invested his soul in the character and brought great pleasure to the Star Wars audience.”

George Lucas:

“Peter was a wonderful man. He was the closest any human being could be to a Wookiee: big heart, gentle nature — and I learned to always let him win. He was a good friend, and I’m saddened by his passing.”