8 Actors On The Short List To Play Han Solo

The casting call to play the young Han Solo was one of the biggest that we’ve ever seen in Hollywood. Nearly every male human with a headshot and a pulse was reviewed by Disney and Lucasfilm as they went looking for the man who would play the young version of Harrison Ford’s famous character. Now it looks like the thousands of potentials have been narrowed down to just a few.

According to Variety, the list is down to about a dozen names, eight of which are specifically listed. So here’s the rundown of the actors most likely to play Han Solo next. Do you like any of them? Do you prefer one over the others? Let us know.

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Miles Teller

Miles Teller is by far the best known name on the list. Teller starred alongside Oscar winner J.K. Simmons in the well-received Whiplash, and played the role of Reed Richards in the not so well received Fantastic Four reboot from this past summer. He’s also been part of the Divergent series. He’s been a fairly high demand actor recently, so his presence here is no surprise.

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Ansel Elgort

Ansel Elgort is a relative newcomer to Hollywood, but has done well for himself in only the last few years. Like Teller, Elgort has been part of the Divergent series, in the role of Caleb. He also had the role of the male lead in the teen weeper The Fault in Our Stars, another film based on a popular young adult novel. Needless to say, the role of Han Solo would make him an overnight superstar.

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Dave Franco

Dave Franco isn’t as well known as his brother, James, though he has been putting together a solid acting career for years. He starred in the surprise hit Now You See Me as Jack Wilder, and will be returning for the sequel later this year. Franco has tried his hand at comedy over the years, in the 21 Jump Street films and Neighbors. He’s currently filming The Disaster Artist, a movie about the making of the cult movie The Room, directed by his brother.

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Jack Reynor

Jack Reynor is a bit of a wild card. While he’s had a strong acting career, the vast majority of it has been in smaller films. Nothing like what a Star Wars movie is likely to be. He’s not completely without blockbuster cred, however, as he did play Shane, the boyfriend to Mark Wahlberg’s daughter in the most recent Transformers movie. Is that enough to help him carry a Han Solo movie? Or will it work in his favor that he's still unknown to mainstream crowds?

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Scott Eastwood

Scott Eastwood is the oldest actor on the short list at the nearly over the hill age of 29. Eastwood started out acting in films directed by his father Clint, and his been making his own name in recent years with roles in films like Fury, The Longest Ride and Diablo. By the time the Han Solo movie hits, he’ll be much better known thanks to his role in Suicide Squad and his starring turn in the upcoming action movie, Overdrive.

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Logan Lerman

Logan Lerman is best known for his work as the title character in the two Percy Jackson films. He was also up for consideration as the new Spider-Man before that role went to Tom Holland. Interestingly, he also had a role in Fury with Scott Eastwood. That was the last time we saw him, though he’s starring in the new film Indignation, which will be screened at Sundance later this month.

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Emory Cohen

Emory Cohen may be the most unknown on this list. After a recurring role on NBC’s musical drama Smash, he went on to play Tony in 2015’s well received Brooklyn. He’s not going to be unknown for too much longer, however. He has at least five movies currently set for 2016 release dates, so a year from now, he’ll be a much higher-profile actor. Maybe it makes sense for Lucasfilm and Disney to snatch him up now, before his star reaches the stratosphere?

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Blake Jenner

Does Han Solo need to sing? If Blake Jenner takes the role, he may have a great voice. Jenner’s major screen role to date was as Ryder Lynn on the TV series Glee. Most recently, he played the role of Adam Foster on CBS’ Supergirl opposite his real life wife Melissa Benoist. Jenner has a couple of films slated for 2016 including the comedy Besties alongside Woody Harrelson and Hailee Steinfeld.

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Dirk Libbey
Content Producer/Theme Park Beat

CinemaBlend’s resident theme park junkie and amateur Disney historian, Dirk began writing for CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 before joining the site full-time in 2018. He has previously held positions as a Staff Writer and Games Editor, but has more recently transformed his true passion into his job as the head of the site's Theme Park section. He has previously done freelance work for various gaming and technology sites. Prior to starting his second career as a writer he worked for 12 years in sales for various companies within the consumer electronics industry. He has a degree in political science from the University of California, Davis.  Is an armchair Imagineer, Epcot Stan, Future Club 33 Member.