STAR WARS Icon Billy Dee Williams On Betraying Han Solo And Scrapped Plans For Lando's Daughter

STAR WARS Icon Billy Dee Williams On Betraying Han Solo And Scrapped Plans For Lando's Daughter

Billy Dee Williams has reflected on how it felt to be hated for Lando Calrissian's decision to betray Han Solo in The Empire Strikes Back and confirms there were once plans for the hero to have a daughter.

By JoshWilding - Jan 27, 2024 07:01 AM EST
Filed Under: Star Wars
Source: SFFGazette.com

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker teased the possibility that Lando Calrissian might have a daughter and various tie-in material would later confirm she was taken by the First Order as a child. Like the kids of many Rebels, Kadara was brainwashed by the Empire's successors and likely became a Stormtrooper. 

A popular fan theory is that Jannah, the ex-Stormtrooper whom Lando forms a bond with, might be his long-lost daughter. Lucasfilm has never committed to that and it's widely believed confirmation of their familial relationship was left on the cutting room floor.

During a recent appearance on the Dagobah Dispatch podcast (via SFFGazette.com), legendary actor Billy Dee Williams revealed that the idea heading into Episode IX was indeed that Lando should have a child. 

"They were trying to decide whether I should have a daughter," he explains. "I don't know if they decided to follow up on that idea, I haven't heard any feedback or anything on where - or what direction they want to take with that."

It appears this fell by the wayside and, short of the plot point being picked up on in a future book or comic, that's probably all we'll ever get to know about the idea! Given how rushed and chaotic The Rise of Skywalker was, it's sadly one of many ideas which were never properly fleshed out. 

In the same conversation, Williams revealed that the way Lando betrayed Han Solo in The Empire Strikes Back has haunted him ever since it happened in 1980. 

"When I went to pick my daughter up from school, the kids would run up to me and say, 'You betrayed Han Solo!' I'd go on an airplane and the airplane stewardess would say, 'You betrayed Han Solo!'"

"I got that for a lotta years, so finally I said, 'Look, think about the whole situation. You're up against a pretty formidable character, Darth Vader, and then there's Boba Fett, and these people were invading my space, and I had to bargain with them. To bargain to prevent at least the complete demise of Han Solo and his friends. But I had to hold on to my whole situation.'"

"So I found myself explaining...to a point where I finally said to people, 'Look, did anybody die? Nobody died!' I think that was a clear implication that I was trying to figure something out, or Lando was trying to figure something out...primarily to hold on to his own situation, without the complete demise of his friends."

Despite that betrayal, Lando remains one of the Star Wars franchise's most popular and Williams has earned icon status among fans. Donald Glover later played a younger version of the hero in Solo: A Star Wars Story and is expected to reprise the role in a future movie (it was originally a Disney+ TV series).

STAR WARS: Rey Set To Appear In Multiple New Movies; Said To Be Lucasfilm's Most Valuable Cinematic Asset
Related:

STAR WARS: Rey Set To Appear In Multiple New Movies; Said To Be Lucasfilm's "Most Valuable Cinematic Asset"

STAR WARS: Simon Kinberg Reportedly Seen As Safe Choice To Develop New Trilogy Despite Past Flops
Recommended For You:

STAR WARS: Simon Kinberg Reportedly Seen As "Safe Choice" To Develop New Trilogy Despite Past Flops

DISCLAIMER: As a user generated site and platform, ComicBookMovie.com is protected under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions.

This post was submitted by a user who has agreed to our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. ComicBookMovie.com will disable users who knowingly commit plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. Please CONTACT US for expeditious removal of copyrighted/trademarked content. CLICK HERE to learn more about our copyright and trademark policies.

Note that ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.

ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 1/27/2024, 8:12 AM
A lot of people did similar things in WWII.

Some did the opposite and icurred the wrath of the Nazis who ended up getting the Jewish, gay or Romani people that they were after in the first place.

I can totally see why he would make the play he made.

Besides, with Han out of the way, that leaves more Leia for the player. Y'dig?
Batmangina
Batmangina - 1/27/2024, 8:30 AM
He was Idris Elba before Idris Elba was Idris Elba.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 1/27/2024, 8:31 AM
I could swear that Lando implicitly stated in TROS that he had a daughter that was taken by the First Order but I could be wrong since I haven’t seen that mediocrity since it came out.

It was weird that JJ decided to introduce and have loose ends such as Finn never telling Rey that he was force sensitive and the scene with Jannah & Lando at the end where it’s implied she might be his daughter or that he was gonna help her search for her family…

I get having those if there were future plans to explore those in future movies or shows but that didn’t really happen so to have that in the final movie of a trilogy was such an odd choice.

Anyway , hope we see Billy Dee in the role again (possibly as a narrator for that Lando movie where he bookends it while the rest is a flashback story with Donald Glover telling a specific instance in his younger life).


bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 1/27/2024, 8:42 AM
@TheVisionary25 - we know from Solo that Lando keeps some sort of videolog, so I could see the movie/tv show start with old Lando finding one of those recordings and the movie than shifting to the past to tell those events
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 1/27/2024, 8:43 AM
@bkmeijer1 - that could be cool too.
McMurdo
McMurdo - 1/27/2024, 9:47 AM
He helped get Leia and the gang off Bespin it's not like he liked what he did. It was a good grey area moment and he makes up for it on Tattooine. ESB is so brilliant.
CoHost
CoHost - 1/27/2024, 10:08 AM
?si=PJP9FK_qZDABCYmM
cyclopstb
cyclopstb - 1/27/2024, 10:11 AM
Lando was forced to betray Han Solo. If he haven't, his life and people of Cloud City would've suffered the same fate as the lifes of Alderaan.
PartyKiller
PartyKiller - 1/27/2024, 2:54 PM
A gay daughter of course.

Please log in to post comments.

Don't have an account?
Please Register.

View Recorder