Writer Charles Soule has opened up about his decision to make Qi'ra from Solo: A Star Wars Story a central figure in his Marvel Comics series Star Wars: Crimson Reign.
"I think one of the keys to writing modern Star Wars (and there are lots of ways to approach it) is to find the characters who still have a lot of interesting questions to be asked and answered about them, despite 40 years of storytelling," Soule said in an exclusive interview with CBR. "Some have more meat on the bone than others, and for some, it's about finding the unexplored era of their lives, drilling down on one set of moments we haven't yet seen."
The writer added that, when you look at story structure through that lens, Qi'ra is an "absolutely perfect character to revisit and build big stories around." Fans may recall that Emila Clarke stepped into the role of Qi'ra, a former love interest of Han Solo, in the 2018 film Solo. The character returned in Soule's Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters, the first installment in his planned trilogy of Star Wars events, as the head of the powerful Crimson Dawn criminal organization.
"She has strong connections to many signature characters from both the Prequel and Original Trilogy eras, there's a defining on-film appearance by Emilia Clarke in Solo," Soule continued. "Her story clearly goes to some wild places we haven't yet seen. For me, she was an obvious choice."
While it's unclear if Clarke will reprise the role of Qi'ra on the big screen in the future, the actor said back in June she has a ton of ideas if Disney ever decided to create a series centered on the character. "[Qi'ra is] the one that has the most unfinished business [from Solo]," Clarke said at the time. "I really had pages about what her life was and what it would be [after the events of Solo]. But I'm afraid I've heard nothing of [Disney+] being the case, so maybe I'll just write it and send it to them. I'll be like, 'Hey guys, I’ve got a few ideas.'" During the same conversation, Clarke celebrate Qi'ra's return in Soule's comics and also shot down rumors that Qi'ra would make an appearance in Disney+'s Lando limited series.
Written by Charles Soule and illustrated by Steven Cummings, Star Wars: Crimson Reign #1 goes on sale Dec. 8 from Marvel Comics.