While the new Star War: Han Solo movie is moving forward under their new director Ron Howard, a new report suggest that Lucasfilm was not only upset with the recently fired filmmakers Phil Lord and Chris Miller, but also by the performance of the movie’s leading actor, Alden Ehrenreich.
According to a story by The Hollywood Reporter, Lucasfilm hired an acting coach while the film had already started filming to help improve Ehrenreich’s acting skills.
[N]ot entirely satisfied with the performance that the directors were eliciting from Rules Don’t Apply star Alden Ehrenreich, Lucasfilm decided to bring in an acting coach. (Hiring a coach is not unusual; hiring one that late in production is.) Lord and Miller suggested writer-director Maggie Kiley, who worked with them on 21 Jump Street.
The late stage hire of an acting coach was part of an extensive list of replacements and additions made by Lucasfilm to improve production, including replacing the movie’s editor, Chris Dickens.
Despite the changes, the directors were still unable to fit their filmmaking style which they had previously used on other hit movies including 21 Jump Street, and match the style and demands of a Star Wars movie. Filmmaking troubles proved especially true when they reached a creative disagreement with the film’s writer Lawrence Kasdan, who demanded Lord and Miller stick to the script. When it was evident the two parties couldn’t reach a compromise, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kenned made a decision to let Phil Lord and Chris Miller go.
While production for Star War: Han Solo resumes on July 10th, it begs the question whether or not Ron Howard will replace Alden Ehrenreich or if the movie will continue with Ehrenreich playing Han Solo. It is important to note a significant casting change has happened in the past. Filmmakers decided to re-cast the lead role in Back To the Future. Four weeks into filming Back to the Future, Robert Zemeckis determined Eric Stoltz had been miscast and was replaced by Michael J. Fox.