Star Wars Doubles Down On Pansexual Lando Calrissian In ‘From A Certain Point Of View: The Empire Strikes Back’
John F. Trent
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The official Star Wars website recently released an excerpt from the upcoming From A Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back that doubles down on the idea that Lando Calrissian is pansexual.
The excerpt is from Faith in an Old Friend by Brittany N. Williams and takes place after Han Solo and Princess Leia aboard the Millennium have escaped Hoth only to be pursued by Darth Vader and Imperial forces through an asteroid field.
Solo is able to evade Imperial forces by landing on a large asteroid.
Related: Rumor: Donald Glover To Reprise His Role as Lando Calrissian in New Star Wars Disney+ Show
After landing on the large asteroid, Solo attempts to diagnose what has happened to the Millennium Falcon’s hyperdrive. He assigns C-3PO to speak to the ship’s computer in order to figure out what is wrong.
It’s during this scene that Williams tells a story from the perspective of L3-37, who was made part of the Millennium Falcon’s computer, which now refers to itself as The Millennium Collective and is made up of L3-37, a former transport droid named V5-T, and a corporate espionage slicer droid named ED-4.
As The Millennium Collective is viewing what is happening in the cockpit, L3-37 reminisces about her relationship with Lando Calrissian. The droid’s memory’s of Calrissian are brought to the forefront after Leia falls into the arms of Han Solo when the ship begins to rock back and forth and she loses her balance. We later find out that they landed within a tunnel of a giant worm, whose movements were shaking the ship.
Williams writes, “ELEVATED HEART RATES DETECTED IN THE COCKPIT, V5-T said.”
“The Collective shifted to the cam, bringing up the visual. Han held the woman, Leia, in his arms. L3-37 suspected what this meant. She remembered how Lando’s heart rate would change whenever they were in close proximity. Something like sadness shoved against her awareness,” Williams continued.
She added, “Is this organic courtship? ED-4 said as they tuned in to the cockpit’s audio. The Collective listened, and L3-37 was grateful for the distraction. That feeling reached ED-4, who sent a gentle nudge back. L3-37 no longer had the body she’d spent so long building or the human partner she’d bonded with so deeply. But she wasn’t alone, and for that she was thankful.”
Williams goes on to then quote The Empire Strikes Back; however, she leaves out the context of Leia falling into Han’s arms as well as their back and forth.
Williams only writes, ““Captain, being held by you isn’t quite enough to get me excited,” Leia hissed. Han pushed her to her feet. “Sorry, sweetheart. I haven’t got time for anything else.” GROSS, V5-T said.”
If you remember after Han catches Leia when she loses her balance she tells him, “Let go.” Han responds, “Shhh.” Leia then persists, “Let go, please.” Han follows that up saying, “Don’t get excited.”
It’s then that Leia responds, “Captain, being held by you isn’t quite enough to get me excited.” She also states it calmly and does not hiss it as Williams writes.
Han then sarcastically responds, “Sorry, sweetheart. I haven’t got time for anything else.”
You can see the scene below at the 1:40 mark.
While the story doesn’t provide the context the film does, it does reinforce the idea that Lando Calrissian and L3-37 were romantically involved with each other as the Disney-created Solo movie insinuated.
Lando and L3-37’s relationship is insinuated at during a conversation between L3-37 and Qi’ra.
L3-37 confronts Qi’ra saying, “So, what are you going to do about your little problem?” Qi’ra responds, “Problem? I uh…”
Related: Rumor: Donald Glover To Return To Star Wars As Lando Calrissian
L3-37 then presses her, “That brand on your wrist tells me that you are committed and that young male’s heart fluctuations tell me he is in love with you.” Qi’ra denies it saying, “Han is not in love with me.”
The robot then says, “Oh please. It’s just us. You don’t have to pretend. I’m in the same situation. I’m sure you’ve noticed that Lando has feelings for me, which makes working together difficult because I do not feel the same way about him.”
Qi’ra responds, “Yes. Yea. Yea. I see that.” To which L3-37 says, “Sometimes I think maybe. But no. We are just not compatible.”
Emilia Clarke’s character then asks, “How would that work?” To which L3-37 responds, “It works.”
Not only would the film insinuate that Lando Calrissian is pansexual, but Solo: A Star Wars Story writer Jon Kasdan would claim Lando is indeed pansexual.
He told MSN back in 2018 saying, “I would say yes. There’s a fluidity to Donald and Billy Dee’s [portrayal of Lando’s] sexuality.”
“I mean, I would have loved to have gotten a more explicitly LGBT character into this movie. I think it’s time, certainly, for that, and I love the fluidity ― sort of the spectrum of sexuality that Donald appeals to and that droids are a part of,” Kasdan continued.
Kasdan then stated, “He doesn’t make any hard and fast rules. I think it’s fun. I don’t know where it will go.”
Related: Star Wars Writer Jon Kasdan Doubles Down on Lando’s Sexuality in Solo: A Star Wars Story
On Twitter, Kasdan would double down writing, “Sorry to have brought identity/gender politics into… NOPE. Not sorry AT ALL cause ’cause I think the GALAXY George gave birth to in ’77 is big enough for EVERYONE: straight, gay, black, white, brown, Twi’lek, Sullustan, Wookiee, DROID & anything inbetween. #droidrights #weAREsentient”
Not only would Kasdan claim that Lando is pansexual, but Solo: A Star Wars Story actor Donald Glover would also claim that Lando is pansexual.
In an interview on Sirius XM radio Glover would be asked about Kasdan’s comments. He responded, “Yea. How can you not be pansexual in space? There are so many things to have sex with. I’m serious. I didn’t think that was that weird. He’s coming on to everybody.”
Glover added, “It didn’t seem that weird to me. If you are in space the door is open. It’s not like he’s just like ‘Only guys or girls.” No, it’s anything. This thing is literally a blob. ‘Are you a man or a woman?’ Who cares?”
However, Billy Dee Williams would offer a very different opinion on Lando’s sexuality. As described by Rolling Stone’s Brian Hiatt, Williams was “perplexed” by the idea that Lando was pansexual.
Related: Star Wars Icon Billy Dee Williams “Perplexed” By The Idea of Pansexual Lando Calrissian
Hiatt wrote, “He was also perplexed by Solo’s suggestion that Lando was in love, maybe even lust, with a droid.”
In fact, Williams told Hiatt, “I think that’s the reason they didn’t have the success they could have had.”
Williams added, “Because they were going for something that was topical, instead of an adventure that’s far beyond those questions. If you’re talking about this huge, incredible story, why lock yourself into this tiny moment between a character like Lando and his robot friend?”
Nevertheless, Lucasfilm and Star Wars are doubling down on the idea of a pansexual Lando Calrissian who is apparently sexually attracted to robots.