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Woody Harrelson Turned Down His 'Han Solo' Role Twice — So Why Did He Eventually Say Yes?

Harrelson has joined the ranks of the high-profile 'Han Solo' movie as Han Solo's mentor, Beckett.

By Dustin MurphyPublished 6 years ago 2 min read
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When it comes to being Woody Harrelson, there's no doubt Hollywood wants you. You're a big name actor and a lot of the time you nail the role for what you're being chosen for. This has been an exemplary case for 55-year-old actor who has joined the ranks of the high-profile Han Solo movie as Han Solo's mentor, Beckett.

The unique thing about this movie? We've seen it already going through a change-up with its production team as Ron Howard has taken up the spot of director. Except, Ron Howard almost didn't have the chance to work with the famed actor. He turned down the role twice, and was not given the option to say no by the anthology's producer Allison Shearmur, he explained to the Hollywood Reporter in an interview.

"I turned [the Han Solo movie] down twice, and [producer Allison Shearmur], wouldn’t take no for an answer."

Harrelson as Haymitch Abernathy (Credits: Lionsgate Films)

It's surprising to see that Harrelson would turn down the role for such a film. It's not his first time though. The actor also did the same thing with his role as Haymitch Abernathy in the Hunger Games movies. He actually did it several times there as well. It was because of Allison Shearmur that Woody Harrelson will now appear in both movie sets that she has worked on and it seems like the glass slipper fits Harrelson's foot for both roles.

“I turned down Hunger Games twice. I didn’t have any idea it would be that big, but I didn’t think it was a good part. I was wrong. It was a terrific part, and it was a terrific thing, but thank God [director] Gary Ross called me. And Alli Shearmur, too."

Except, this isn't the first time between the two that Woody Harrelson has done this. He recently passed up the giant-ape movie King Kong: Skull Island, because he didn't "care about #KingKong" . Lucky for him, it paid off. He was contacted a week later to star side-by-side with the very talented Andy Serkis who plays Caesar in War for the Planet of the Apes, which has led to critical acclaim since it's weekend debut just a few days ago.

Harrelson as The Colonel in War for the Planet of the Apes (Credits: 20th Century Fox)

In his interview about his acting career with Shortlist that he's rather particular about the roles he plays. Even when it comes to top-name brands such as Star Wars, Planet of the Apes, and Zombieland. He's an actor that understands that his roles are ones that he enjoys. Ones that he feels are best for his career and that he feels drawn to.

“No, man – not at all! I feel like every movie I do is ‘one for me’. I don’t do movies just to try to make a hit. I mean, sure… You could point out that I’m doing Star Wars, I’m doing Apes, and I get that. But, y’know, I really like Star Wars, I really like Apes.

It goes to show, even that Harrelson is even pumped for his role as Beckett in the upcoming Han Solo film, which is set to premier in theaters on May 25th, 2018.

For Woody Harrelson that was a close call. It seems through sheer persuasion he's landed some astounding roles and hopefully keeps doing so in the future!

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About the Creator

Dustin Murphy

A video games journalist and Content Creator. He has been featured on sites such as AppTrigger and MoviePilot. He's the president and editor-in-chief of the independent news publisher Blast Away the Game Review.

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