Yesterday shouldn’t have been the final straw for Gina Carano, instead what concerned Lucasfilm back in November, enough to make them question her leading her own show (likely Rangers of the New Republic), should’ve been when they cut her loose. Unfortunately, there was no word, one way or another, as she spread anti-science ideas, false election fraud claims, support of the violent insurrection on January 6, anti-semitic memes, and transphobic behavior in tweets/Instagram posts long after November, leaving trans/non-binary fans (and any fan of Star Wars who understands her actions are antithetical to what the franchise stands for) to feel forgotten by Lucasfilm as she featured more prominently in The Mandalorian’s second season.
Fans first attempted to reach out to Carano throughout it all, to tell her how she was being harmful, but she would simply block any outreach, so the wondrous group at the Geeky Waffle started an excellent charity drive (which just hit $20,000!!) for the Transgender Law Center to combat the hate Carano was spreading and I made sure to donate while also bringing to light her behavior in my reviews because it would be dangerous to ignore or not mention what she was doing just because she was playing a character in a Star Wars TV show. As great as the charity drive was, Lucasfilm still needed to do something to help make it right, and while they finally did on Wednesday, the damage had unfortunately already been done. However, it didn’t make it any less joyous to see her dropped by her talent agency after Lucasfilm let her go (and now Hasbro is phasing out figures of her as Cara Dune), though how much it means to the fans who felt scorned or forgotten or unimportant to the company due to the length of her employment despite her actions remains up to them to decide alone. Also, let’s hope they don’t continue to operate at a Hutt’s pace when problems with cast or crew become clear like this again, as it allows the person to do more damage and hurt the fans who matter most to the future of the franchise, not the ones who are the loudest (and in the minority).
As for what to do with the character of Cara Dune going forward? If she’s needed for Rangers of the New Republic or any upcoming parts of The Mandalorian, like absolutely needed, recasting her and let an actress with morals own the role wouldn’t be a bad way to go, but I do feel like she could easily be written off Mandalorian and never written into the other and it wouldn’t change much of anything.
This whole situation also brings us to Rosario Dawson and her further work in Star Wars as Ahsoka Tano in live-action productions. Over at All Things Ahsoka, Kelly has written an important, thoroughly researched, comprehensive, and thoughtful article about Dawson’s involvement, like how fans should respect those her continued employment ostracizes, how sites should cover the upcoming show, and so much more. The principles in that article are how I’ll work to cover the Ahsoka show on the Manor when it releases and I urge every visitor to this article here to read it as well.
Even better than the news Lucasfilm will no longer work with Carano? Seeing Pedro Pascal, her co-star who attempted to tell her why she was being harmful with her transphobic remarks and actions, being cast as Joel in HBO’s upcoming TV show adaptation of The Last of Us video game! It goes to show what happens to good people who don’t spout hate and harm others, as Pascal has proven a staunch ally of all human rights, which includes Black Lives Matter and trans-rights, especially as evident from his support of his sister. And as a giant fan of The Last of Us series, I played the first more times than I can count and I’m eager to play the second just as many (and it’s stuck with me long after I beat it), his casting his mind-blowing and spectacular, as is Bella Ramsey’s for Ellie, as I would gladly die for Lady Mormont and she surprised me with her turn in His Dark Material’s second season; Couldn’t ask for a better cast or for it to happen to better actors/people and I’m deadly excited for this show now.
But we can always ask for better when it comes to the cast, crew, and companies when it comes to protecting the rights of those most ignored by our society, so I’m forever grateful Lucasfilm finally did something with Carano…though I hope they act much sooner in the future.
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.