Although pre-production on Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s young Han Solo spinoff has been underway for some time now (operating under the clever codename “Red Cup”), today marks the full, official start of production. To celebrate, Lucasfilm has debuted the first photo of the cast and their directors, crammed together inside the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon as if posing for a very cheerful (if a bit tardy) holiday greeting card.

Ta-da! “Happy holidays, from our Star Wars to yours.”

Lucasfilm
Lucasfilm
loading...

Pictured above are Alden Ehrenreich (sporting a new, Harrison Ford-esque hairstyle), Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover, Phoebe Waller-Bridge (I still can’t get over the fact that this genius woman is going to be in a Star Wars movie), Chewbacca (obviously) and directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller. Ehrenreich is, of course, playing young Han Solo, with Glover as young Lando, Harrelson as Han’s mentor, Waller-Bridge as a new female droid (a first in the Star Wars universe), and Joonas Suotamo as Chewie. The roles of both Clarke and Thandie Newton (not pictured) remain unknown.

Per Lucasfilm, the still-untitled young Han Solo spinoff explores the “adventure-filled past of the iconic scoundrel and everyone’s favorite Wookiee,” and officially began filming on February 20 at Pinewood Studios in London. Here’s another brief description of the plot:

The movie will explore the duo’s adventures before the events of Star Wars: A New Hope, including their early encounters with that other card-playing rogue from a galaxy far, far away, Lando Calrissian.

The Han Solo spinoff will hit theaters on May 25, 2018.

More From 96.5 The Walleye