Harrison Ford's injury: What does it mean for 'Star Wars' production?

Harrison Ford was recently injured on the set of the new 'Star Wars' film. Harrison Ford's representative said he had successful surgery and is 'doing well,' so what does this mean for the 'Star Wars' production schedule?

Last week brought the unfortunate news that Harrison Ford was injured, during filming on the upcoming Star Wars: Episode VII. The almost 72-year old Ford will be back on his feet in time (literally), but it may take longer than previously anticipated – though, Episode VII director J.J. Abrams is expected to carry on with production as planned, albeit with the order of filming scenes changed up a bit.

It’s rumored that the Episode VII script by Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan (The Empire Strikes Back) – revised from an earlier draft by Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3) – includes expanded roles for the established, fan-favorite Star Wars characters of Luke, Leia, and Han Solo – with Ford as Solo rumored to have the largest role of the trio. It’s still reasonable to assume that, in order to lay the foundation for the Star Wars franchise to continue on for years to come, the majority of Episode VII‘s running time will be devoted to introducing theyounger generation of characters – as opposed to, focusing on its seasoned veterans.

As was mentioned before, however, certain other cast members no doubt have scenes without Ford to film; such material will therefore be shot while Ford recovers, so that Episode VII may still make its December 2015 release date – without having to rush elements of production, that is.

Among the fresher faces in Episode VII is one Daisy Ridley, a British actress and relative newcomer who, simply judging by her appearance, could feasibly be playing the daughter of Han and Leia (Carrie Fisher); if she is indeed sharing protagonist duties with John Boyega (Attack the Block) as rumored, that would also explain why Ford could have a major role in the story (e.g. Han lending a helping hand to his kid on her adventures).

Of course, there are other popular theories about the young cast members of Episode VII and who they’re playing – such as the rumor that Domhnall Gleeson (About Time) is portraying the son of Luke (Mark Hamill). Most Star Wars movies in the past have featured multiple subplots, which necessitate such key players to head off to different planets and places in space; assuming that tradition continues with Episode VII, there should be entire narrative threads that can be filmed without Ford needing to be on set.

Having said all that – we wish Ford a speedy recovery for his own sake, and hope that this is the last Episode VII-related news of this unfortunate ilk that we have to report hereon out.

Sandy Schaefer blogs at Screen Rant.