DIRECTOR Ron Howard has said he expects his new Star Wars spin-off film to be “controversial”.

Solo: A Star Wars Story will hit cinemas in the UK on Thursday. Apollo 13 filmmaker Howard stepped in after the departure of original directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

He said: “It was unlike any experience I ever had, and unfortunate that they needed to change directors at a certain point, but the one thing that I could offer was fresh excitement.

“I wouldn’t have come in unless I felt the story was really strong and offered something to fans and also real belief in this charismatic, cool cast and objectivity.

“I didn’t know what it would be like of course, but I wound up having a blast. Of course there is that pressure with something like this. On the one hand, everybody at Lucasfilm and involved in the projects is very, very interested in fans and trying to imagine what the fans might think, but by the same token they are creative.

“This movie does take risks. It doesn’t have The Force, it’s not about a war, it really focuses on a single character for the first time, and this right of passage, defining, adventure story about Han Solo.

“The tone of the movie is young and fun. There is drama, there is real pain, but the centre of it is more about this quest for freedom and trying to throw off the burdens of oppressors and things like that, so it has a kind of an energy.

“It also depends a lot on the relationships. There is a romantic relationship that matters, there is the Han-Chewie bromance, there is a funny adversarial relationship between Lando and Han.”

Asked if the mixed response to Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, which was released at the end of last year, had made him nervous, Howard said: “When you have really fervent fans, dedicated fans, it’s a little bit like if you love sports or a certain kind of a television show, you get to be emotional about it.

“I’m sure Solo will be controversial for some people because it’s sort of a different Star Wars movie. We will see how they respond. I fully expect some controversy so I’m curious about what that will be.”