I believe I could say, with about 99.9% certainty, if you were to ask any average joe on the street to name 1 movie Harrison Ford has been in in the last 15 years, other than Indy 4, you would get a blank stare. Taking a small role in the sequel trilogy would get him back in the public eye big time. I don't see how, if asked, he could ever turn down that role.
I don't think anyone would dispute that his most recent projects the past decade haven't exactly been the most commercially viable outside Indy4 and C&A. Thus keeping his profile lower. My intent was to counter the notion that he's "strapped for cash", he's still attracting paying projects to the fact he'll seemingly have 3 come out over the course of 2013.
No one really knows what Ford's current feelings about playing Han are. When asked about it in the past Lucas said he would not make any sequels. So Ford really had no choice. He was just giving his feelings comparing Han to Indy. That in the OT Han filled his supporting role and had no where else to go. But a sequel would show a very different Han Solo. At least 30 years older. He might be open to the idea now that its a real option and the character would be developed differently.
Maybe they can lure Harrison Ford to do Episode 7 if it's a small role and features the death of Han Solo. I don't see him coming back for a full film but a small pivotal role might get him in.
Honestly if he could be hired for Ender's Game in a supporting role, I don't see why a cameo appearance in Episode 7 would be out of the question.
Latest directing rumour is Matthew Vaughn, and this is why he dropped out of the X-Men sequel just 5 days before the Star Wars announcement. I also wonder if John Williams will be back to do the score. A Star Wars movie on the big screen without a Williams score seems almost sacrilegious, but one never knows.
It could certainly provide a good motive for any offspring to lean towards the darkside. Not sure how fandom would react to Han, Leia and the Falcon going up in flames though. FWIW (if anything) he does do the occasional rather expensive private signings now, so he's prepared to sign Star Wars photos.
Ford will be just fine with the idea of returning to the role of Han Solo. Once he learns that Disney is going with a younger Indy.
Hmm, we have Horner, Gianchinno (sp?), Zimmer, and, if we want to put in smaller folks, Bear McCreary. If Williams does not return, for whatever reason, who would we have in his place?
Rumour has it Ford is apparently open to EpVII if the script and director are to his liking, which is fair enough.