Fans became more than a little concerned recently, when it was announced that Rogue One: A Star Wars Story was set to undergo 'expensive' reshoots after producers were supposedly concerned after seeing an early cut of the film. Director Gareth Edwards (who also helmed the recent Godzilla remake) set out to make more of a war film rather than a classically structured Star Wars adventure movie - which is allegedly one reason why Disney execs weren't keen on the vibe of the spinoff's initial cut. Still, it's very common for major film productions to undergo reshoots, so this news doesn't necessarily mean there's disaster on the horizon.
Moreover, with reshoots come a number of opportunities. Obvious reasons are the ability to tweak and add shots and even extend scenes to make the story more coherent or make a particular element stronger, but the chance to add more to it is perhaps where all the intrigue lies. For example, the latest superhero epic from Bryan Singer, X-Men: Apocalypse, underwent reshoots and added a certain cameo that fans were more than happy with.
The same could be happening with Rogue One, where a rumor indicates that one of the galaxy's most iconic characters is set for a return, albeit as a cameo, which would certain raise the public interest of the spinoff. Variety's Justin Kroll tweeted a revealing comment, claiming that a source not only reassures that reshoots were something of an inevitability, but that a cameo is being snuck into the mix, which prompted masses of speculation as to who it'd be.
Sources say reshoots are expected on ROGUE 1; nothing to worry about, most of the shoot will involve the cameo of a very important character— Justin Kroll (@krolljvar) May 31, 2016
It's surely no coincidence that they're choosing to squeeze in a cameo just weeks after Alden Ehrenreich was all-but-officially confirmed to play young Han Solo in the upcoming spinoff. Coupled with Variety's other report claiming that young Han Solo will appear in Rogue One from earlier this year and it seems a fair bet that moviegoers will get their first glimpse of the Hail Caesar! actor in the Star Wars universe sooner than they might have imagined.
The addition of trigger-happy renegade Solo (originally portrayed by the legendary Harrison Ford, of course) will be a huge bonus for the production that's set to be big, but not as globally dominant as Star Wars: The Force Awakens was. His name alone would likely convert some skeptics and also ramp up the intrigue levels for many who are still curious over Edwards' branch-off story. The likelihood is that Solo's cameo would add some much needed humor and wise cracks into the fray, but we probably shouldn't expect to see too much of the dashing waistcoat wearer; even if he is in the movie, it probably won't be a big role.
While X-Men: Apocalypse's cameo of Wolverine was a nice nod to the franchise, his inclusion was simply to make the present story richer in terms of its connection to the larger X-Men film mythology, and also inject a major adrenaline rush to audiences seeing Logan imprisoned in a maximum security facility (before he promptly escapes, of course). So there's nothing to stop us seeing Han Solo jump into a scene and offer his assistance before disappearing again, in Rogue One.
NEXT: Han Solo Movie Starts Filming in January 2017
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story opens in U.S. theaters on December 16, 2016, followed by Star Wars: Episode VIII on December 15, 2017, the Han Solo Star Wars Anthology film on May 25, 2018, Star Wars: Episode IX in 2019, and the third Star Wars Anthology film in 2020.
Source: Justin Kroll