In a surprising development that sent a disturbance throughout the “Star Wars” galaxy Tuesday night, the franchise’s upcoming Han Solo prequel film lost its directors.
Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are leaving next year’s “Star Wars” spinoff film, Lucasfilm announced on Tuesday night.
“Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are talented filmmakers who have assembled an incredible cast and crew, but it’s become clear that we had different creative visions on this film, and we’ve decided to part ways,” Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm, said in a statement.
Kennedy added that a new director would be announced soon, but did not go into further details about why the change was taking place or when the new director would be announced.
Lord and Miller added that ultimately their vision didn’t match up with that of Disney’s Lucasfilm.
“Unfortunately, our vision and process weren’t aligned with our partners on this project. We normally aren’t fans of the phrase ‘creative differences’ but for once this cliché is true,” Lord and Miller said in a statement. “We are really proud of the amazing and world-class work of our cast and crew.”
The news is very much unexpected considering that the film, which is still untitled, is in production and that it is set for release next May.
The film, which stars Alden Ehrenreich as a young version of the lovable, blaster toting smuggler, tells the origin story of the character who was made famous by Harrison Ford in the 70s and 80s. Ford reprised his role as Solo in 2015’s blockbuster hit, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
Lord and Miller are best known for their work directing “The Lego Movie” and “22 Jump Street.”
“Star Wars” fans on Twitter took the news with a mixture of confusion and concern.
As strange as this news is, it’s not the first time that a “Star Wars” spinoff has seen issues during production.
Reports of reshoots for the franchise’s first spinoff film, “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” worried fans before its release last December.
Yet, that film ultimately went on to make more than billion dollars worldwide.