Their bond is actually closer in real life than in the movie. "Star Wars" actors Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) and Harrison Ford (Han Solo) have an intimate friendship even when the cameras are not rolling. Producer Kathleen Kennedy, talking to Entertainment Weekly for the new cover story on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, witnessed their very warm and fuzzy reunion. After 32 long years, Ford and Mayhew had finally met again for another film.
In a Yahoo news article, Kennedy recalled the nostalgic meeting of the two: "We had a dinner and the whole cast was reunited just before we started shooting. I had no idea how close Peter and Harrison were. And when Harrison came into the room and Peter was sitting down, he just went over and gave him the biggest hug, and you could just see that there had been this incredible relationship between these two."
Mayhew and Ford apparently incited Star Wars nostalgia even among the most seasoned crew members. They were together on set for the very first time since the "Return of the Jedi" in 1983. The producer told Entertainment Weekly her impressions about the rare scene of the two actors: "The minute Harrison and Chewie walked on board the Millennium Falcon - that was incredible. Every single person on the set was stunned. I remember turning around, and there must have been 200 people gathered behind me - completely quiet. I didn't even know they were there. The whole crew had stopped working, staring at the monitor, because it was so iconic." The childhood memories of the crew members may have been triggered by the Millennium Falcon set.
Unfortunately, a large piece of the ship came loose and fell on Han Solo, causing injury to the actor that sidelined him for weeks. This happened partway through production. The actor now suffers from a broken leg, which temporarily delays the film's shooting.
When J.J. Abrams , the film's writer-director, was about to rewrite the script to give way to Ford's condition, the 73-year-old star amazingly bounced right back to where the action is. "He apparently is an actual superhero," said Lawrence Kasdan, the movie's co-screenwriter.
