Emilia Clarke and George R.R. Martin arrive at at the 12th Annual AFI Awards held at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills on January 13, 2012 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo : Getty Images/Frazer Harrison)
Known for playing Daenerys Targaryen in the HBO series "Game of Thrones," Emilia Clarke has been chosen to play the female lead role in an upcoming "Star Wars" spinoff, to be directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller. The spinoff is a standalone film focusing on Han Solo to be played by Alden Ehrenreich.
The last film Ehrenreich starred in was "Hail, Caesar!" opposite Josh Brolin and George Clooney. Ehrenreich is set to star opposite Taissa Farmiga and Haley Bennet in "Rules Don't Apply," which will hit theaters on Nov. 23.
While promoting "Rules Don't Apply" in an interview with Fandango, Ehrenreich was asked about how he was dealing with the pressure of being cast as Han Solo. He said Lord jokingly told him that it was like the scene in "Hoosiers" where Gene Hackman took the kids out to the basket.
Along with Clarke and Ehrenreich, "Spider-Man: Homecoming" star Donald Glover will play the third lead character, Lando Calrissian, in the "Star Wars" spinoff. The three underwent testing sessions for the standalone film.
Represented by CAA and Emptage Hallett, Clarke tested in London along with "Dope's" Kiersey Clemons, fellow "Thrones" actress Jessica Henwick, and "Emerald City" star Adria Arjona. "Selma" and "Creed" star Tessa Thompson, "Power Rangers" actress Naomi Scott, and Zoe Kravitz read for the female lead in October.
The "Star Wars" spinoff will be released on May 25, 2018. With Kathleen Kennedy and Allison Shearmur producing, the standalone film will begin production in January 2017, according to Variety.
There are still no details about the character to be played by Clarke. In 2017, the "Game of Thrones" actress will star the films "Voice from the Stone" opposite Marton Csokas and Caterina Murino, "Set It Up" opposite Glen Powell and "Above Suspicion" opposite Jack Huston and Johnny Knoxville.
Lord and Miller are not only directing the "Star Wars" spinoff but also writing the script and executive producing the film. Like the "Star Wars" standalone project, "Rogue One," which will be released on Dec. 16, the Han Solo spinoff will be set before "Star Wars: A New Hope."
Watch an interview with Clarke on "Conan" here:
