This post contains SPOILERS for Solo: A Star Wars Story
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Han's famous gold dice return in Solo: A Star Wars Story, continuing to highlight their importance in the franchise. What was once a mere background prop in A New Hope has taken on a greater sense of significance, as they dice have been used for some emotionally-charged scenes and character moments. In fact, they're so prominent in this new era of Star Wars films, some theater locations were actually handing out replica pairs for fans at special events before Solo preview screenings. Other than Han's trusty DL-44 blaster, the pair of dice is the object most associated with the smuggler these days.
In Legends continuity, Han used the dice in his fateful game of sabacc against Lando Calrissian when he won the Millennium Falcon. For official canon, Lucasfilm changed this up a bit. Han still beats Lando at cards to get the ship, but the dice aren't part of the equation at all. Instead, they're just a lucky pair of dice Solo carries around, but that doesn't make them any less meaningful. They still maintain a symbolic weight that serves as a through-line over the course of all the films.
Related: We Try To Explain Solo's Reshoots
Solo is primarily about Han's quest to find a home far away from Corellia and the watch of Lady Proxima. For a majority of the film, he dreams of flying away with his friend (and love interest) Qi'ra, who grew up alongside Han as a fellow scrumrat. The two are very close and the dice are a shared thing between them. Han passes them off to Qi'ra for luck as they try to sneak aboard a transport off-planet (before being separated and going on diverging paths), and later receives them back from Qi'ra during their mission to Kessel. Solo's belief that his future lies with Qi'ra holds true up until her crushing third act betrayal, and Han realizes the co-pilot he was searching for is actually Chewbacca. In many respects, Han and Chewie are meant for each other; the "good guy" smugglers resorting to a life of crime to survive. By Solo's end, Han wins the Falcon and the dice are hanging in the cockpit. The ship is home.
Initially, Han was supposed to hang the dice again after reclaiming the Falcon in The Force Awakens, but the scene was cut. Instead, they play a large role in The Last Jedi, when Luke Skywalker first takes them down as he remembers his fallen friend and later hands General Leia a Force-projected copy of them during their final conversation on Crait. In this instance, the dice symbolize Han. It was Last Jedi's way of giving viewers the big three reunion they always wanted. And tying back to the home theme, this was Luke (who was tortured and haunted by his failures) returning to where he belonged, giving the Resistance their much-needed spark of hope. In this instance, home for Luke was in that base on Crait as he attempted to make up for previous mistakes - the dice being a reminder of their past and what they're fighting for.
It's doubtful George Lucas ever intended the gold dice to be this prominent in the franchise. Due to the filmmaker's love of cars and auto racing, he probably included them as a nod to the fuzzy dice some people hang from their rearview mirrors. In fact, the dice are nowhere to be seen in The Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi, but the new films have placed an onus on them. The story group deserves credit for giving the dice some meaning, and perhaps they'll factor into Episode IX next year.