First, let it be said that I'm basing this on a discussion I had earlier today with a friend, and haven't even considered pursuing it. Breaking news isn't my concern at all in this matter and the last thing I want to do is burn bridges. I simply think its fun to look at all angles of what we're seeing and see what opinions come out from said discussion.
This is the thing, I work in the film industry, and based on my experience when something like the Harrison Ford injury occur, its force majeure time. When I was working on 50/50 our original lead James Mcavoy had to leave the production due to an emergency back home. Sadly for Mcavoy, the emergency happened right after we shot the head shaving scene. The production was shut down and the crew took a break while the producers found a replacement. Thankfully Joseph Gordon Levitt was available to fill in and we were back to work in short time… And his performance was sublime. A truly skilled performer and a gentleman in all respects.
In the case of Episode VII, recasting the actor is impossible. We'd all lose our minds if someone else was cast as Han Solo in an episodic Star Wars movie. That ruled out, the only other choice is to rework the shooting schedule. Trouble is, most films aren't fully cast when they go to camera. The film I just finished working on had a scene with [I can't say who] playing a cameo in one of the larger scenes. Originally, the script had someone else in the scene and we didn't have the actor we got cast until days before we shot the scene. He too was awesome.
Furthermore, not every set is built, not all set dec is sorted out, not all props are designed, not all costumes are fitted, and not all prosthetics are crafted when a film goes to camera. All those things are on a schedule to be ready when they are needed. For the schedule to change all these components need to be in place. This can always be arranged but there would likely still be a break from filming to achieve the goals set for a revised schedule.
Since Disney has gone on record stating the release date will not change, the logistics seem a bit weird. Does it mean it can't be done? Of course not. It is, after all, the movies. Anything can be done. But wait, this is the first Disney Star Wars film. Do they really want to risk it?
What are your thoughts?
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