After escaping from a robot-brothel, Thandie Newton’s next challenge could be getting into a marriage of connivance with intergalactic bad boy Han Solo. The Westworld actress is rumored to be in talks for a major role in the next Solo-centric Star Wars standalone, and she’d be great as the smuggler Sana Starros, formerly Han Solo’s wife.
In the canon Marvel comics, Sana made her first appearance in issue #4 of the Skywalker Strikes storyline, first published in April 2015. At the time, Sana claimed she was the legitimate wife of Han Solo and even told Princess Leia “she wanted her husband back.” The marriage was eventually revealed to be a ruse, a contrivance used by Han and Sana in an elaborate robbery. And because the new film takes place in Han Solo’s shadier past, it’s entirely possible Sana and Han’s fake marriage and the ensuing robbery could be depicted onscreen.
According to Variety, Thandie Newton hasn’t been officially cast in a role in the Han Solo movie, but reported on February 10 that she was “in negotiations,” for a role. After her memorable turn on Westworld as the renegade robot-host Maeve, Thandie Newton would be a formidable match for Han Solo, at any age.
This isn’t the first time talk of Sana “Solo” has orbited the Han Solo movie. On October 5, 2016, casting rumors involving Tessa Thompson, Naomi Scott, and Zoe Kravitz also created speculation that Sana could appear. After Amelia Clarke was officially cast in the movie on November 18, 2016, the Sana rumors went away for a little while. Of course, the Han Solo movie isn’t beholden to depict anything that’s happened in the previous Star Wars comics, but there does seem to be a fair amount of ground — and parsecs — the film has to cover to keep all the continuity straight. Whether Thandie Newton as Sana figures into all that remains to be seen.
Here’s all the details on the Han Solo movie to date.
