Episode viii will pick up where vii left off
LONDON: The anticipated Star Wars: Episode VIII will pick up from the cliffhanger in the final scene of The Force Awakens. And a new Han Solo has been unveiled for a stand-alone film on the much-loved character. “I didn’t want to skip ahead. That last moment of (Episode) VII, I want to see what happens next,” director Rian Johnson told fans on Sunday in London. Each of the previous Star Wars films has picked up at least a year after the events of its predecessor. Johnson said Episode VIII will get “to the heart” of the new characters and challenge them. On Sunday, rising star Alden Ehrenreich, 26, was officially introduced as Han Solo in a franchise spinoff due out in May 2018 that will follow an origin story of the handsome space smuggler made famous by Harrison Ford. Disney is releasing three stand-alone films that will explore new realms and stories outside of the Star Wars trilogies.