'Star Wars' Han Solo release date, casting news: Paul Bettany to replace Michael K. Williams; official title named?

Replacement director Ron Howard for "Star Wars" Han Solo film Reuters/Neil Hall

The critically-acclaimed actor Paul Bettany has just been added to the cast of the upcoming "Star Wars" Han Solo movie to replace Michael K. Williams. Also, the official title of the movie may have already been named.

The British actor replaced Michael K. Williams who could not continue with the production of the sci-fi adventure because he had already booked another project called "The Red Sea Diving Report." Due to Williams' inability to do reshoots, renowned director Ron Howard decided not to include his previously shot scenes in the movie to avoid the incoherent flow of the narrative. In the end, he was substituted with Bettany.

Howard earlier replaced Phil Lord and Chris Miller who encountered creative differences with producer and Lucasfilm chief Kathleen Kennedy and co-writer Lawrence Kasdan. Lord and Miller are known for their work on "The LEGO Movie" and "21 Jump Street."

With Howard now in the director's chair and with a different vision, reshoots were inevitable which unfortunately didn't go the way of Williams who is known for his work on "12 Years a Slave" and "Gone Baby Gone." His replacement, Bettany, is noted for his performances in "A Beautiful Mind," "Avengers: Age of Ultron," and "The Da Vinci Code."

In related news, rumors have surfaced that the title of the "Star Wars" Han Solo movie may have already been named. According to a Reddit user, the standalone film might be called "Han Solo: A Star Wars Story" based on a photo of a production catalogue which he shared but now deleted.

The title would make sense since the previous standalone film in the anthology series was called "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story." It remains to be seen if this will be the official title of the sci-fi movie.

The "Star Wars" Han Solo film will premiere on May 25, 2018.

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