The actor pleaded with George Lucas to kill off his character in the fifth episode

Jun 9, 2014 17:17 GMT  ·  By
Harrison Ford wanted Han Solo to die in “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back”
   Harrison Ford wanted Han Solo to die in “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back”

You think you know Star Wars and its intricate timeline, the trivia, the characters and the behind the scenes gossip, but did you know that Han Solo wanted to die a long time ago, as Harrison Ford actually begged creator of the franchise George Lucas to kill off his character?

As work for “Star Wars: Episode VII” begins, with many of the original actors like Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamil, we get to hear some of the secrets that have been buried on the original film set for so many years.

As is turns out, Ford demanded repeatedly that Han Solo, the character he was portraying in the movie, be killed off in the fifth chapter of the franchise, “The Empire Strikes Back.” This was at the moment that Solo was captured, frozen and sealed in carbonite, to be delivered to Jabba the Hutt.

Lucas told Deadline: “Harrison kept yelling through the whole thing, 'Kill me! Kill me! Kill me! I said, 'Harrison, I can't kill you. I need you at the end of the next movie. There's this love thing going on. But I'll do the next best thing. I'll put you in a slab of concrete and ship you off to Mars'.”

There's a nice conversation starter at the next “Star Wars”-themed party or movie marathon you're going to host. Harrison is probably glad that Lucas didn't heed his requests decades ago, because he gets to play Solo again and complete the creator's vision of the story.