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Han Solo: Directors Guild Rule Entitles Lord And Miller To Make Their Own Directors’ Cut


The firing of Phil Lord and Chris Miller from the Han Solo project has caused quite the stir-up—not just with fans, but with Lucasfilm and the Directors Guild of America (DGA) as well. Though we'll be seeing Ron Howard's version of the movie next year, there is actually a chance that fans can still see the Han Solo movie that Lord and Miller wanted to deliver, thanks to a DGA loophole.

According to The Wrap, the rule states:

"A director who is replaced after directing ninety percent (90 percent) but less than one hundred percent (100 percent) of the scheduled principal photography of any motion picture shall be the Director of the film entitled to all the post-production creative rights set forth."

They also add:

"No one shall be allowed to interfere with the director of the film during the period of the Director's Cut. There shall be no ‘cutting behind' the Director as that term is commonly understood in the motion picture industry."

With three weeks left into production, it's very possible that Lord and Miller had already gotten to the 90 percent mark, and they would be entitled to cut a version of Han Solo that they are happy with. Because of the DGA rule, Disney or Lucasfilm won't be able to do anything about Lord and Miller making their cut. However, Disney is not obligated to distribute Lord and Miller's version for them.

Way it looks, I think Lord and Miller wouldn't want to rattle the cage of the giant that is Lucasfilm. It's still very likely that they didn't reach the 90% mark at all, and they wouldn't be entitled to making a directors' cut. Nevertheless, I would have wanted to see what they had in mind. The pair have had a very successful run of movies—e.g., The Lego Movie, 21 Jumpstreet— so I would trust that they knew what they were doing with Han Solo.

Let's just wait and see how all this turns out.

Han Solo is set to hit theaters May 25, 2018.

See Also: Ron Howard Weighs In On Taking Over Han Solo

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