It looks like Solo: A Star Wars Story could shirk tradition in a huge way by leaving out a certain character that’s appeared in every single previous Star Wars movie. With Solo only a few weeks from release, details from early previews have begun emerging, and the rumor is that even though actor Anthony Daniels makes a cameo appearance, he isn’t playing C-3PO.
In an interview published by Uproxx on Saturday, Solo writers Lawrence and Jonathan Kasdan revealed that Daniels actually plays a Wookie that’s friends with Chewbacca. “In the Papillon type offshoot story,” Jonathan said, “the Wookiee that helps them escape, Chewbacca’s best friend, is played by Anthony Daniels — and beckons him to join them as they escape on a different ship.” (This explains the other Wookie we’ve seen in some Solo trailers.) The Wookie’s name, according to the cast list, is Tak. All this means that Solo is the first Star Wars movie to not* include the anxious protocol droid in some fashion, and it also means that Daniels is the only actor to appear in every Star Wars film ever.
That other Wookie is actually played by Anthony Daniels in 'Solo'.
Mark Hamill — best known for playing Luke Skywalker — accidentally confirmed last week that Daniels was in Solo. Most of us just assumed he’d appear in a fan service-y cameo as C-3PO much like he did in Rogue One, so this news comes as a bit of a shock.
Supposedly, Kessel is a place where the Empire used Wookie slaves as forced labor, so it stands to reason that this is where Chewie bids farewell to his Wookie friend before joining up with Han for good. We do already know that the movie will take fans to Kessel in some capacity, and it’ll presumably show us the long-hyped “Kessel run” that Han’s been bragging about since A New Hope.
It’s tough to say how much screentime Daniels gets in Solo, but we’ll find out soon enough. The movie debuted at Cannes on Friday, May 11, and hits theaters on wide release on May 25.
If Tak survives Solo, maybe the Wookie could return in Episode IX? After all, with Han dead, Chewie’s life debt should be fulfilled, right?
