Some fans of the original trilogy have a long list of problems with the two most recent episodes in the Star Wars saga, and one of the issues that keeps getting brought up is the lack of Chewbacca. Yes, Chewie gets a few scenes here and there, but he definitely isn’t a major player in the films anymore.
A combination of bold story decisions and real-life tragedy has led to the new trilogy not feeling quite as much like the original films as many people would have liked. However, with Lucasfilm producing so much Star Wars content these days, they have the opportunity to make it up to this section of the fan base.
This initiative has been off to a rocky start, as the long wait leading up to what many people thought was an underwhelming first trailer for Solo: A Star Wars Story didn’t do much to inspire confidence among Star Wars enthusiasts. The behind-the-scenes drama and countless negative rumors have also put a bit of a damper on Solo, but with the movie a little over a month away, things are starting to look up for the spinoff adventure.
Last week’s trailer release was met with much more positivity than the previous one. A big reason for that was the amount of screen time that was dedicated to Chewie and Lando. While there have been some concerns about the casting of Alden Ehrenreich as Han Solo, there aren’t a lot of fans who are upset about Donald Glover taking over the role of Lando Calrissian.
From what we’ve seen in the trailers, Glover is going to be effortlessly cool in the role, but it still might take a bit of time for the audience to adjust to seeing a new actor play this iconic character. This is what makes Chewbacca such an important part of the movie. No disrespect to the great Peter Mayhew, but most viewers won’t notice that it’s a different actor in the furry brown suit.
Chewie stole the show in most of the new Solo clips we’ve seen, making fans hopeful that he’ll have a bigger role in this movie than he’s had in the sequel trilogy so far. One of the new TV spots focuses on the blossoming friendship between Han and Chewie, featuring some fun moments between the two Star Wars legends.
No matter how fans might feel about Ehrenreich, or this movie’s existence for that matter, it definitely is nice to see Chewbacca get a chance to shine. While he doesn’t need his own standalone film, it will be interesting to see how the movie explores Chewie’s backstory and how the life debt is introduced.
We found out a couple years ago that this aspect of Han and Chewie’s relationship would be a part of the new canon, along with Chewbacca’s family. However, the way the movie chooses to explore these areas of canon is still mostly unknown.
In the trailer, we see Chewbacca embrace another Wookie, likely his wife or child. This reminded many people of the first on-screen appearance of Chewie’s family, the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. While this hilariously terrible attempt at a cash-grab isn’t canon, paying homage to it by way of Chewie’s family would certainly put a smile on some faces.
Another moment in the trailer shows just how strong Chewbacca is, with him picking up some poor soul and slamming him head-first on the ground. We’ve long heard about how the Wookie could absolutely wreck shop but haven’t seen him do it in such a visceral way before.
Perhaps the Chewie we see in Solo is different than the one we get to know in the original Star Wars films and is a bit more willing to rip an arm out of its socket. It’s entirely possible that meeting and befriending Han causes Chewbacca to change his outlook on life. Either way, the direction the filmmakers take in showing us how one of the most memorable relationships in Star Wars lore came to be will be one of the most highly anticipated parts of the film.
Even though this is something that probably doesn’t need an entire movie devoted to it, fans who haven’t been satisfied with The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi might get a little bit of that old school Star Wars magic when they see Han, Chewie and the rest of the crew go on an untold adventure.