ST Harrison Ford (Han Solo) in TFA

No, Calista is just turned sideways behind the pole,,,

 

But if he's had a personal breakdown - say, him and Leia split 15 years after RotJ when the kids are in their early teens - it is totally plausible that he may turn his back on the military and start frequenting establishments of low moral fibre and smuggling again. And before people start going on about how will the audience know, it can be explained very easily and quickly in a convo between Leia and one of the now grown up kids.
And if he returned to being a scoundrel (with a heart) it wouldn't diminish his arc through the OT. People learn and better themselves, go through a problem and lose the qualities they gained, and then they come through it the other side smelling of roses. That's life. That's an interesting life story. Imagine the Solo arc as more than just the OT - it would be pretty boring if he just went from scoundrel to nice to nicer to nicer still to nicest. I want to see ups and downs, peaks and troughs. Not just in his arc, but in general. Also, it wouldn't be a regression if he was a down and out - we've never seen him in that state.

OUCH!

 

plaidphoenix he's to big to be a Space Station

 

I sort of find it disrespectful that they would bring back an older version of a beloved character just to kill him off.
It would be completely unnecessary. Killing Luke or Leia is different cos they can Obi Wan it up

 

Apparently the contract dispute between Ford & Lucasfilm is due to Ford's insistence that Han Solo would now wear an earring. Let's hope it gets resolved soon.

 

Maybe he wants a puffy shirt too.

 

And a peg leg.

Also, Chewbacca is now a parrot.

 

Picturing Chewbacca trying to sit on Han's shoulder.

 

Now there's a mental image....

*Googles 'parrot Chewbacca' *

 

"would somebody get this big flying carpet outta my way"

 

Han Solo in Episode VII. You're welcome.

 

I know we're all (?) excited about the Big3 reprising their roles in the ST, but sometimes I wonder if we'd actually like an older Han. Make no mistake, at 60 or 70 you're never the same person you were back when you were in your early or mid 30's. Part of the appeal of Han Solo was his being a greedy smuggler, at the beginning of ANH, a daring character, self-reliant, somewhat arrogant, one of the last guys you'd expect would settle down and have a family, even if by the end of Episode VI he is totally in love with Leia.

Are we really ready to see Han as a father? Writing an older Han that pleases fans is no small feat, especially if you have to portray him as a guy who's in his 70s or 60s and does and feels and acts the way older people do. Are fans really willing to accept such a character? Or are we all (subconsciously) ready, really ready, to see an older Han? Make no mistake, he won't be the same guy he was in the OT. How could he? Are we ready for that?

I can already imagine the amount of moaning and complaining we'll see if the character does not live up to everyone's expectations, which he won't do, he more than likely won't.

Just wondering.

For me it is easier to imagine an older Luke, than an older Han. Say what you will, but Luke is the sort of guy I can definitely picture as a man in his 60s, wiser and with a family. That's why I said it'd make more sense for Han and Leia to be separated and for Han to sorta still be doing what he did when he was younger, but in a smaller scale. Or a guy who's not still a smuggler, but who's on his own, doing his thing.

I mean, I fear that if they give us a father Han type of character, a man who's been changed by family and his marriage to Leia, fans will complain that that is not Han, even if they think they're willing to accept an older Han.

But maybe a divorced/separated Han would be easier for fans to accept, because that'd still be consistent with the guy he was in ANH and maybe the guys he's always been, you know...

Any thoughts on this?

 

Not necessarily. It's been 30 years since the events we saw in ROTJ. In 3 decades, Han and Leia could've gotten married, divorced and gotten over each other. Things can change a great deal in 30 years. Think about it. It's not 5, not 10, not 20, not 25, but 30 years.

I know a couple of people who've been divorced for more than 10 years and there's no tension or drama between them and their former spouses.

 

I'm totally ready to see an older Han, who is a husband and father and seeing how this has changed him. I certainly don't want to see an older Han who has slipped back into his old ways just to make things "more exciting". We've already seen him like that, let's see him as something different. To me, that's a lot more exciting. And just because he's married with kids doesn't mean he has to be boring.

 

I wouldn't mind if the big 3 were somehow splintered and separated and some tragic event to start VII has to bring them all back together. I'm not tied to the idea that Han and Leia lived happily ever after. Deep down, I have hopes that this episode will be a "get the band back together" revenge tale ala Unforgiven, but I know my expectations are out of whack.

 

That won't be a problem - have you seen his most recent performances?

 

I am not underestimating anyone, TigerCraneFist. You sound like a very mature SW fan, who's willing to accept change. But sometimes I wonder if the unwillingness to accept change, which is one of the reasons the PT backfired on a lot of people, will also affect their perception and aceptante of an older Han. Even if you're right when you say most people don't turn into completely different people, we have no reason to think that Han isn't one of those people who do change a lot. Think about this: he is a family man. Do you have kids yourself? I am asking because having kids did change me, a great deal, to the point where I am not the same person I was (I'm in my late 30s) back in 1992, for instance. I'm sure the younger version of myself would be very suprised if she could meet me today.

I am just wondering if most SW fans are really aware of how much these characters may have changed in 30 years. I sense an unspoken assumption that things in the ST will not only resemble and feel like the OT, but that the Big 3's participation in the ST will bring back the glory of their heyday. Make no mistake, I know there are fans out there who are hoping to see Luke, Leia and Han being the same people they were in the OT and that won't happen. How could it? It's been 30 years.

I can tell you're already aware of the obvious changes we will see, but trust me when I say there are fans who haven't even thought about stuff like this, who are not even aware of what 30 years can actually mean for a person in terms of change, basically because they haven't lived 30 years themselves.

Just saying.

I never said we have to accept an older Han, but like I said above, many fans are not even aware of what 30 years can mean in a person's life in terms of change.