‘Star Wars’: 6 People You Didn’t Know Auditioned to Be Han Solo

Kurt Russell

Once upon a time, Kurt Russell was attached to the role of Han Solo. He was a big favorite to land the role of Solo, but was a very sought after actor in Hollywood. In fact, he didn’t just audition for the role of Han Solo, but he also read for the role of Luke Skywalker as well.

This would have drastically changed the dynamic character of Solo. You can tell by Russell’s audition tape (seen above) that although he read well for the role something was missing. In an interview with ABC News, Russell said that:

“I was in there on ‘Star Wars’ and remember asking George one day, ‘Do you think you’re going to use me or not?’ And he said, ‘I don’t know which part I prefer you in. I don’t know if I like you as Han and this guy as Skywalker, or this guy as Han and you as Skywalker. I don’t know.

Russell went on to say,

“I said, ‘I gotta make a decision on this Western and I gotta go to work,’ and he said, ‘I just can’t give you an answer.’ So I said, ‘All right, I’m going to go take this Western and there will be one less guy to think about.’ I don’t know if he would’ve hired me.”

It almost sounds like the reaction of a typical actor who was getting all sorts of roles thrown at him. He was young an impatient, and most said that early versions of the Star Wars scripts were really weak.

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