Movies

'Solo: A Star Wars Story' Will Feature A Retro Ship Based On Classic Concept Art

Solo ship
By Ben Pearson/

During production of Solo: A Star Wars Story, director Ron Howard wasn't shy about sharing images from the set – including one particular easter egg that was a shout-out to the work of famed Star Wars concept artist Ralph McQuarrie. But now we know Solo will put another concept artist's work from the original movie to good use in the form of a retro spaceship. Read more about the new (or is it old?) Solo ship below.

New Solo ship

Inverse pointed us to this tweet from a Star Wars fan who noticed a couple of new toy ships from the movie:

We don't know much about the Arrestor Cruiser (Is it an Imperial ship? Does Han pilot it at any point in the new movie?), but it's clear it was constructed based on the designs of artist Colin Cantwell, who created the Death Star, X-wing, TIE Fighter, and other ships from the Star Wars universe. Cantwell's Instagram page is full of cool pieces of concept art, and the most hardcore Star Wars fans may recognize the Arrestor Cruiser as one of Cantwell's first attempts at visualizing the Star Destroyer.

The creation of the #Stardestroyer – I asked George about the scenes. We had a few words in which he described the scenes. I then asked "Is it bigger than Burbank?" to determine the size of the Imperial Cruiser and the opening scenes of the movie. The hatch concept was developed in terms of the need of actual scenes later in the movie. In the opeing I was describing something WWII-ish of a concept with a gunner in the fuscelage. The ship was designed with a lot of thought on what the viewer would experience related to the massiveness of the ship. This involved thinking of things and creating relationships between all of the ships and their interactions with each other. George and I also discussed several other topics in which I asked qualifying questions. This gave me enough information to start designing the ships. It also gave him the information to continue with his work. I was separate from George for most of that time and worked on the final products alone. I started by creating what had to be in the middle and things were added on and so forth. I basically designed this ship and other ships around the function and the impact of the ship on the viewer. The sequence of function and the emotion and it had to feel like it was already there. When starting on a ship, I never did know what it would look like by the end. PS – those fighters in the concept illustration were the original imperial attack ships. I didn't create the #TIE until much later. See the other concepts at www.cantwellcollection.com

A post shared by Colin Cantwell (@colin_cantwell) on

Cantwell's most recent post confirms this, and entertainingly answers some fan questions about the original creation of this ship:

Very exciting! #solo will feature my original concept for the #stardestroyer. I absolutely can not wait to see her on the silver screen. See this 1974 concept and others at www.cantwellcollection.com and even purchase autographed copies (if there are any left). #royaltiesplease #arrestorcruiser #starwars #colincantwell Questions I've heard so far – What are the radar dishes for? Originally anti-ship / space-to-land lasers, now likely tractor beams. Did I know ahead of time? Nope. News to me Am I getting a payday? Very unlikely unless you all buy prints on my website Why did I make such an ugly ship? Can't please everyone. The ships talk to me and mostly design themselves. I did help redesign her later on, but this concept still holds a special place in my mind

A post shared by Colin Cantwell (@colin_cantwell) on

In case it gets deleted, here's the relevant text from the caption:

Questions I've heard so far:

What are the radar dishes for? Originally anti-ship/space-to-land lasers, now likely tractor beams.

Did I know ahead of time? Nope, news to me.

Am I getting a payday? Very unlikely unless you all buy prints on my website.

Why did I make such an ugly ship? Can't please everyone. The ships talk to me and mostly design themselves. I did help redesign her later on, but this concept still holds a special place in my mind.

Here's the movie's official synopsis:

Board the Millennium Falcon and journey to a galaxy far, far away in Solo: A Star Wars Story, an all-new adventure with the most beloved scoundrel in the galaxy. Through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future copilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian, in a journey that will set the course of one of the Star Wars saga's most unlikely heroes.

Solo: A Star Wars Story is directed by Ron Howard and stars Alden Ehrenreich as space smuggler Han Solo, along with Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover, Thandie Newton, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Joonas Suotamo, and Paul Bettany. Solo zooms into theaters on May 25, 2018.

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