UPDATE: Jon Favreau seems to have revealed his Solo character. See below.
Iron Man and The Jungle Book director Jon Favreau is a pleasant last-minute addition to the cast of Solo: A Star Wars Story as the voice of an alien. The modern Star Wars films are no stranger to star-studded cameos, ranging from Daniel Craig's stormtrooper to Joseph Gordon-Levitt's law-abiding Canto Bight resident. There were even plans for British royalty to appear in The Last Jedi, but the roles for Princes Harry and William were cut due to their height. Apparently, they were too tall for stormtroopers.
With all that in mind, fans already knew to be on the lookout for guest stars in Solo this summer. Director Ron Howard has already confirmed his brother Clint will make an appearance, as will Star Wars staple Warwick Davis. They won't be the only ones, as a key member of the Disney family has now been confirmed to lend his vocal talents to the galaxy far, far away. Jon Favreau is coming to Star Wars.
Related: Every Solo Reveal From EW's Coverage
A couple of weeks ago, Favreau shared a photo on his Twitter account of himself with Howard and Solo co-writer Lawrence Kasdan. Today, Howard retweeted it with an explanation for why the three were together. Favreau took some time off from directing Disney's upcoming Lion King remake to voice a "very cool and important alien character."
UPDATE: Jon Favreau posted a picture of an alien gunner from the Solo trailer to his Twitter account, indicating this is the character he's voicing. The rest of the original article follows.
It'll be interesting to see how Favreau's mysterious alien fits into Solo's narrative. Considering his involvement is being made public now in the midst of post-production, it likely isn't a principal role, but the character could still be a key factor in a subplot or scene. After all, Gordon-Levitt's own alien from Episode VIII was fairly important, since his telling on Finn and Rose prevented the two from contacting Maz Kanata's master codebreaker friend and landed them in prison. Star Wars has a habit of using aliens as plot catalysts (Maz herself, Dexter Jettster, etc.), so having Favreau serve that function would be keeping in with franchise tradition.
In all likelihood, Favreau's Solo character won't be officially revealed until after the movie premieres. These are the kinds of things Lucasfilm prefers to keep as a surprise for audiences during their initial viewing. Knowing Favreau is in the film is one thing, but the onus will be on moviegoers to spot him when Solo opens in May. It'll just be one of the many Easter eggs the spinoff has to offer, and it'll surely delight fans.
MORE: Mark Hamill Excited To See Solo
Source: Ron Howard
Update Source: Jon Favreau
