LOS ANGELES • The origin story of Han Solo, the roguish intergalactic Star Wars bounty hunter, has finally been given a title, director Ron Howard revealed on Tuesday.

Solo: A Star Wars Story will follow the beginnings of the gruff but lovable Han Solo, made famous by Harrison Ford in George Lucas' Star Wars films. The movie is scheduled for release on May 25 next year.

Howard, who took over the production after the sudden departure of directors Philip Lord and Christopher Miller in June, revealed the title in a short video and said filming had wrapped.

Alden Ehrenreich is taking over the role of the titular bounty hunter, while Donald Glover will play young Lando Calrissian, who was played by Billy Dee Williams in the original trilogy (1977 to 1983).

The spin-off is part of Walt Disney Co's expanding slate of Star Wars movies, which was rebooted by the 2015 blockbuster, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. That film made more than US$2 billion (S$2.7 billion) at the global box office.

The Han Solo film is the second of three standalone Star Wars films, which kicked off with last year's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

REUTERS