Donald Glover (Community, Atlanta, the rap game) has been officially cast as Lando Calrissian in the Phil Lord and Christopher Miller directed Han Solo stand-alone film set for 2018, a role long rumored and greatly anticipated.
The role of Han Solo himself was cast in May of this year with Alden Ehrenreich taking the part. While the film community celebrated this decision, I think it's safe to say that it's Glover that made the bigger wave among the popular crowd.
Lord and Miller via starwars.com:
We’re so lucky to have an artist as talented as Donald join us. These are big shoes to fill, and an even bigger cape, and this one fits him perfectly, which will save us money on alterations. Also, we’d like to publicly apologize to Donald for ruining Comic-Con for him forever.
The film still has no title, but will be the second stand-alone film in the franchise following Rogue One this December. Due to the newness of the stand-alone concept in the Star Wars universe, the success of Rogue One will surely determine the tone and budget for the next feature. It's my hope that the grittier tone of the first will allow for growth in the second. The idea of a prequel for an iconic character such as Han Solo makes me nervous, but it's a solid financial play. With the fate of Han Solo decided, it's only natural to give the audience a taste of his beginning.
For instance, the Millennium Falcon wasn't always Han's. He won it gambling with his "old pal Lando." If there is a God, there will be some footage of Donald Glover behind the controls before he has to hand it over to the smuggler. Seeing Gambino with the Calrissian signature mustache and cape will forever be a great moment.
Lately, Glover has been at work on his FX television series Atlanta and preparing to release his next Childish Gambino album Pharos. He is also slated to appear in the reboot of Spiderman in a role unknown to the general public.