Over the past few years, there have been several HUGE casting calls for giant, would-be iconic roles. Some of the castings have ended up being… um, less than stellar. Think about Nicole Kidman being cast as Grace Kelly, or Rooney Mara as Lisbeth Salander. But some big casting choices have ended up being great: think about how perfect Rosamund Pike was for Gone Girl (my problem was always with Ben Affleck’s casting as Nick). Well, the new BIG casting call is for “the young Han Solo.” Disney is going to make a bunch of Star Wars prequels/spinoffs and they’re looking to cast a 20-something actor for “young Han Solo.” Producers have been seeing tons of actors. And none of them sound all that great.

It’s a hunt that would make Jabba the Hutt proud. Disney and Lucasfilm are scouring the galaxy in what some are calling the widest casting search ever for the actor who will play a young Han Solo in the planned Star Wars spinoff movie. According to sources, more than 2,500 actors have met on the project or put themselves on tape, with casting director Jeanne McCarthy running point on finding the man to fill the vest made famous by Harrison Ford in the first Star Wars trilogy and The Force Awakens, which opens Dec. 18. The contenders are being whittled down before Star Wars spinoff directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who worked with McCarthy on the hit Jump Street films, hone in on their Han. The movie isn’t due to shoot until January 2017 for a May 25, 2018, release, so they have plenty of time to make a choice.

“This has been the easiest movie to audition for,” says an agent with a client who has auditioned. “They are seeing everyone.”

Actors who have read in person or auditioned via videotape range from the well-known (Dave Franco, 30, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, 25, and Miles Teller, 28) to the sort-of-known (Jurassic World’s Nick Robinson, 20) to relative unknowns (Kickin’ It’s Leo Howard, 18, and The Purge’s Tony Oller, 24) and also vary significantly in age. Though sources say the “sweet spot” seems to be the mid-20s, the ages of the contenders span from Chandler Riggs, the 16-year-old star of The Walking Dead, to Hunter Parrish, 28, and Mr. Robot star Rami Malek, 34.

Casting directors are not just focusing on American actors, either, considering Canadian Hemlock Grove star Landon Liboiron, 23, and English actors Ed Westwick, 28, Tom Felton, 28, and Joshua Sasse, 27, among many, many others.

Others who have thrown their hats in the ring include Fury’s Logan Lerman, 23, The Fault in Our Stars’ Ansel Elgort, 21, and Transformers: Age of Extinction’s Jack Reynor, 23, plus TV faces like Teen Wolf’s Colton Haynes, 27, and Bates Motel’s Max Thieriot, 27.

[From The Hollywood Reporter]

Well… the list thus far seems reasonably varied. I like Rami Malek, but probably not for Han. Miles Teller has the cockiness needed to play Han, but could he also do vulnerable and romantic? The inclusion of Ed Westwick is my new favorite thing – I LOVE ED WESTWICK and I would love it if he had a real shot at this. Ansel Elgort… too much of a fancy boy, just my opinion. There’s something about Han that needs to have some “street.” Aaron Johnson… I don’t know. I’m not really feeling that one. If producers had to decide today, I think they would probably go with Miles Teller. Isn’t that sad?

Photos courtesy of WENN.