Star Wars: Chewbacca Actor Reportedly Cancels Convention Appearance to Film More 'Episode IX' Footage

Few words instill fear in fans as much as "re-shoot," with the implication sometimes being that a film's original production was such a massive failure that the cast and crew needed to create new footage to alter the original narrative. A recent report about Joonas Suotamo, the actor who plays Chewbacca, canceling a convention appearance due to having a larger role in Star Wars: Episode IX than anticipated comes with excitement from fans, as it could mean we get to spend more time with our favorite Wookiee.

The report comes from the folks over at StarWarsNewsNet, claiming that the reason for the Suotamo's return to the set of Episode IX is the result of script rewrites.

The biggest pieces of evidence regarding the actor's cancellation ties into the film's shooting schedule and Billy Dee Williams' involvement in the upcoming sequel. Suotamo was slated to appear at Rose City Comic Con this September, which was announced in June. On August 1st, shooting for Episode IX began, confirming that Williams would be in the sequel. If Suotamo knew that he would be shooting Episode IX in September, he likely never would have agreed to attend the convention in the first place.

The site speculates that, with co-writer/director JJ Abrams having confirmed back in February that a script for the film had been completed, the original narrative didn't feature Lando Calrissian. Once Williams officially signed on, possibly as late as July, the script was rewritten to include not only Lando scenes, but scenes featuring a reunion with Chewbacca, requiring Suotamo to return to the production.

With production having launched in August, it might seem peculiar that Suotamo would wrap his role as Chewbacca so shortly after shooting began. A source confirmed with StarWarsNewsNet that the actor had filmed a majority of his role for Episode IX towards the end of production on Solo: A Star Wars Story. If this is the case, then it means these scenes were filmed before the script for the upcoming sequel was officially completed and was likely due to the efficiency of utilizing sets at Pinewood Studios where Solo was filmed.

What all this means for the final product is unclear, though we doubt anyone will complain about getting more Chewbacca.

Episode IX lands in theaters in December of 2019.

What do you make of the situation? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

[H/T StarWarsNewsNet]