Dave Filoni and Rick Famuyiwa Address Cara Dune’s Absence in ‘The Mandalorian’ Season 3
Fans of The Mandalorian that maybe disconnected from the Internet in early 2021 may have missed that Gina Carano was fired from the show following a series of highly controversial social media posts that ruffled the wrong feathers with some fans online and at the studio headquarters.
Carano played Alderaanian soldier Cara Dune, who had a recurring role in both seasons of the hit Disney Plus show and who was reportedly going to get her own spin-off show that was scrapped before being announced; she was also heavily speculated to be part of Rangers of the New Republic, a series that was also axed in 2021, though the exact reasons haven’t been disclosed. At the time Carano was fired, in February of 2021, the third season of The Mandalorian was not only written but also ready to go into production following The Book of Boba Fett. That was pushed back a few months, which we assumed was due to rewrites around Cara Dune’s character. However, most of this is based on reading between the lines, because the producers and the studio have been tight-lipped about the entire Gina Carano situation ever since the announcement was made. Until now.
In an interview with Deadline, The Mandalorian season 3 producers Dave Filoni and Rick Famuyiwa weighed in on the matter, and confirmed that Cara Dune is still alive somewhere in the galaxy. Said Famuyiwa:
“Cara was a big part and continues as a character to be part of the world. It had to be addressed in the creative and [Jon Favreau] took the time to think about that. It was something that was discussed as we knew it was going to have impact on the show, but at the same time, what has been at the heart of the show are the two characters — Din Djarin and Grogu — so ultimately it felt like a servicing of that, and around the Mandalorians.”
When asked if she’s just bounty-hunting by herself out there, Filoni added the following:
“It’s a big galaxy and we have many characters in it — many characters are fighting for their screen time. We’ll just have to see as the season unfolds what the adventures are, but it’s a great character, someone who was vital to Din Djarin’s beginnings; we’ll see if he has evolved beyond that.”
Interestingly enough, it almost sounds like they are tiptoeing around the fact that she will be recast in the new season, something that The Hollywood Reporter was told from insiders two years ago would not happen. But Filoni also added this new season has a lot more going on than ever before, and there probably isn’t much time to spend on many other characters:
“Now Season 3 is mainly dealing with Mandalorians and the Mandalorian saga, the Mandalorian tale. (There’s) different characters he’s met since Bo-Katan (who) take a lot more prominence, which makes sense where his arc is going, the story of him and Grogu specifically.
It’s a great character. I get requests across the board for all types of characters. I’ve been with Star Wars, it’s coming on 20 years. It’s a great galaxy. The hardest thing is finding time and space for everyone out there. George [Lucas] use to talk about when he was making the prequels, he had so many great characters and they all wanted screen time. How do you do it when your job is to tell the story of Anakin Skywalker? I relate to that.
The Mandalorian in the title is the story about the Mandalorian and his people.”
The wait for The Mandalorian season 3 is almost over, as the new season will premiere within hours of the posting of this article. Disney recently confirmed the list of directors for the new season, as well as the episodes each of them would be directing. In particular, Rick Famuyiwa is directing three of them, including Wednesday’s season premiere.
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as movies from Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
