Star Wars Outlaws recruits the best character from the Han Solo film, but not the actor who played her

Emilia Clarke in Solo: A Star Wars Story
(Image credit: Lucasfilm/Disney)

Star Wars Outlaws is bringing back the fan-favorite Qi'ra for another bout, but she won't be portrayed by the same actor as in Han Solo's prequel movie.

One of the best things to come out of Solo: A Star Wars Story was Emilia Clarke's Qi'ra of the Crimson Dawn. There were some good freaky aliens in there, too, plus Donald Glover's Lando Calrissian was fun, and Alden Ehrenreich was a great young Solo (despite what Disney thinks), but Clarke's Qi'ra was one of the standout newcomers for the movie.

Yesterday's Star Wars Outlaws trailer revealed a release date for the new game, but it was a Game Informer mag reveal that shows Qi'ra is returning for the shooter. The fan-favorite returning for the game has led to some predictably normal reactions from Star Wars fans, including tweets such as "QI’RA CONFIRMED FOR OUTLAWS I’M GOING TO SCREAM" and "QI’RA BACK QI’RA BACK, QI’RA BACK QI’RA BACK" and so on and so forth.

However, it appears it won't be Clarke that's portraying the character this time around. In the tweet below, Game Informer online content director Brian Shea claims he's managed to confirm with Ubisoft that Clarke won't be the actor behind Qi'ra in Star Wars Outlaws. At the present time, there's no word on who actually is behind the returning character.

Outlaws is all about Star Wars's underworld, so it makes sense that a murky figure like Qi'ra is returning. Protagonist Kay Vess could even be compared to a young Han Solo, for what it's worth. There's even a pre-order bonus that directly references Solo's infamous feat with the Kessel Run.

Elsewhere for the new game, Star Wars Outlaws is launching sooner than you think, arriving across PC and new-gen consoles later this year on August 30. You can shell out up to $130 for the Star Wars Outlaws Ultimate Edition if you feel like getting three-day early access to the shooter on August 27, which some single-player fans aren't best pleased about. 

Read our big Star Wars Outlaws interview with Ubisoft to peer into its portrayal of the murky underworld. 

Hirun Cryer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.