The Millennium Falcon’s New Design
As first glimpsed in the trailers, the Millennium Falcon looks a little different in Solo from the design every Star Wars fan knows off by heart in the rest of the movies. As Han takes the wheel and almost destroys the ship by completing the fabled Kessel Run, we learn that the reason it looks so different later in its life is because it was hastily repaired by Han and Chewie.
So, what are the differences? Well, there’s the blue adornments on the outer hull, the single-barrel turrets and, most notably, the space between the front mandibles is filled in. We learn that this is an escape pod, which Han jettisons in order to escape a creature that pursues the ship during the Run.
Though these elements of the ship have not been seen in the films before, they actually date back to before A New Hope. This design of the Falcon is based off legendary concept artist Ralph McQuarrie’s original vision for the ship. This isn’t the first time his work has inspired the modern Star Wars movies, either, as Darth Vader’s castle in Rogue One was also based off a piece of his that never came to light in the Original Trilogy.