Billy Dee Williams Teases Donald Glover Lightly Over Lando Calrissian Character

BYGabriel Bras Nevares488 Views
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"Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" European Premiere - Red Carpet Arrivals
LONDON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 18: Billy Dee Williams attends the "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" European Premiere at Cineworld Leicester Square on December 18, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Tristan Fewings/Getty Images)

With the development of a new Lando movie on the horizon, the suave Cloud City administrator's original actor thinks he's one of one.

Billy Dee Williams brought Lando Calrissian to life in 1980's The Empire Strikes Back, entering the minds and hearts of Star Wars fans everywhere since. But amid reports of the development of a new movie based on Cloud City's suave administrator and eventual Rebel general, he had some light teasing to do to the character's young interpreter, Donald Glover, also known as Childish Gambino. Moreover, Glover portrayed Lando in Solo: A Star Wars Story in 2018, and his take on a younger version of the character was pretty well-acclaimed despite other issues folks had with Solo. Yet Billy Dee thinks that the entertainer's performance stands on his massive shoulders.

"I had a nice little lunch with him," Billy Dee Williams told Radio Times magazine of Donald Glover. "He’s a delightful young man. Extremely talented. But I don’t see him… I mean, when it comes to Lando Calrissian, there’s only one Lando Calrissian. I created that character." However, he knows that Lando has to evolve with a new generation, so he offered Glover some advice to be more charming and mold the character to a new audience, set of demands, and artistic approach in the narrative. As the 86-year-old remarked, he already defined Lando in the 20th century, and now it's time for Gambino to do the same for the 21st century.

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Donald Glover At A Solo Screening

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 21: Donald Glover attends a screening of "Solo: A Star Wars Story" hosted by The Cinema Society with Nissan & FIJI Water at SVA Theater on May 21, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage/Getty Images)

Not only that, but Billy Dee Williams also suggested that there's one way that Disney could convince him to return to the role. "Pay me a lot of money and I’ll sell my soul," he told the publication. For those unaware, the entertainment company already did so for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in 2019, for which the New York City native reprised his iconic portrayal of Lando Calrissian 36 years after his last appearance as the character in 1983's Return of the Jedi. We'll see if he ever sells his soul again.

Meanwhile, Childish Gambino is working on possibly remastering and re-releasing his 2020 album 3.15.20. While that's only based on social media teases, a lot of folks are expecting new music from him very soon. But if you're more into the 40-year-old's screen work, there's plenty more where that came from as of late. For more news and the latest updates on Billy Dee Williams and Donald Glover, stick around on HNHH.

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About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a music and pop culture news writer for HotNewHipHop. He started in 2022 as a weekend writer and, since joining the team full-time, has developed a strong knowledge in hip-hop news and releases. Whether it’s regular coverage or occasional interviews and album reviews, he continues to search for the most relevant news for his audience and find the best new releases in the genre. What excites him the most is finding pop culture stories of interest, as well as a deeper passion for the art form of hip-hop and its contemporary output. Specifically, Gabriel enjoys the fringes of rap music: the experimental, boundary-pushing, and raw alternatives to the mainstream sound. As a proud native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, he also stays up-to-date with the archipelago’s local scene and its biggest musical exponents in reggaetón, salsa, indie, and beyond. Before working at HotNewHipHop, Gabriel produced multiple short documentaries, artist interviews, venue spotlights, and audio podcasts on a variety of genres and musical figures. Hardcore punk and Go-go music defined much of his coverage during his time at the George Washington University in D.C. His favorite hip-hop artists working today are Tyler, The Creator, Boldy James, JPEGMAFIA, and Earl Sweatshirt.