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Harrison Ford has portrayed the beloved \"Star Wars\" character since the original 1977 film. He most recently stepped into the role in last year's \"Star Wars: The Force Awakens.\"

The filmmakers said 3,000 actors auditioned for the role. Lord added that Ehrenreich, 26, \"was the first person to audition.\"

The young actor, best known for his role in \"Hail, Ceasar!\" and the Woody Allen-directed film \"Blue Jasmine,\" did multiple screen tests, including one with Chewbacca.

It seems that fans have approved of the casting, including The Force Awakens\" star John Boyega, who surprised attendees at the event.

Speaking about Ehrenreich, Boyega joked, \"Look at him, he's smiling just like Han Solo.\"

Watch: Alden Ehrenreich take the stage for the first time after being announced as the new #HanSolo #SWCE pic.twitter.com/92HzG8eVj8

— Fandango MOVIECLIPS (@MOVIECLIPS) July 17, 2016

Lord, 41, and Miller, 40, also explained why Han Solo was perfect for a standalone film in the \"Star Wars\" franchise.

\"The dichotomy of this grouchy, seemingly cynical guy who has the biggest heart in the galaxy ... to me, that’s a great character to make a movie about,\" Lord said.

Miller added: \"He's a maverick, he's a scoundrel, he's clever, but he's not smart. And he wants to present himself as a cool tough-guy, but in the end he always does the right thing, and that's why you love him so much.\"

#StarWarsRebels' @Dave_Filoni visits the #EpisodeVIII set. -Future Filmmaker Panel #SWCE https://t.co/d9pDXJZ3Ey pic.twitter.com/3rxV1xfnCp

— Star Wars (@starwars) July 17, 2016

Director Rian Johnson also revealed big news about the forthcoming \"Star Wars: Episode VIII,\" out in 2017, which apparently filmmakers have been calling \"Space Bear\" as a code name.

\"This movie is going to start right were the last one left off,\" Johnson teased. \"That final scene in 'VII,' I want to see what happens next.\"

Johnson, 42, added that the \"second film is where we start zooming in on the characters and getting to the heart of them, challenging them, and pushing them deeper.\"

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