On May 4th, fans celebrated the so-called “Star Wars Day“(May the 4h be with you). But the holiday turned out to be blurred due to the ugly scandal arranged by the leadership Lucasfilm…
It’s about the dismissal of the actress Gina Carano from the series “Mandalorian“(The mandalorian) on charges of publishing “anti-Semitic” statements. However, officially Lucasfilm representatives or Disney never acknowledged the fact of breaking the contract with the performer of the role of the Marshal of the New Republic Kara Dune…
In fact, an anonymous representative of the studio told the media about the expulsion of Carano. Moreover, the sources The hollywood reporter claim that the order came from Lucasfilm, not Disney. Therefore, we can assume that the head of the studio became the architect of the scandal. Kathleen Kennedy…
But she clearly did not calculate all the consequences of the decision, which was made on the eve of the report. Mickey Mouse houses to investors. Although Disney did not officially admit it, in the past few months, the streaming service metrics Disney + leave much to be desired, and the collapse began during the dismissal of Gina Carano.
The studio had the worst Marvel, which started producing its own series this year. According to non-Disney analysts, the series “Wanda Vision“(WandaVision) and “Falcon and the Winter Soldier“(The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) could not get around in terms of “Mandalorian”. Moreover, this spring, Disney + surpasses the outsider in terms of performance. HBO Max, which is significantly inferior to the competitor in terms of the size of the user audience.
The image of Disney itself also suffered, which in the first couples authorized the discontinuation of merchandise with Kara Dune (figurines, clothes, and so on), as well as the cancellation of several books based on The Mandalorian. It looked like all references to the character would be completely erased from the Star Wars universe. Mickey Mouse House also ordered the cancellation of an episode from the sixth season of the TV show “Star Survival with Bear Grylls“(Running Wild with Bear Grylls), in which Bear Grylls and Gina Carano conquered the Dolomites (Italy).
This “cancellation” scenario was not appreciated by viewers, fans, investors and shareholders. Moreover, the authoritative business portal Forbes sharply criticized the policy of the head of the company, Bob Chapek, accusing the House of Mickey Mouse of hypocrisy and opacity.
But the main blow fell on Lucasfilm’s reputation, which already leaves much to be desired. For several months in a row, enraged fans have consistently bombarded with ephemeral “rotten tomatoes” any publications on social networks made on behalf of the studio. I even got it Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which published Kathleen Kennedy’s speech.
Since April 1, the Lucasfilm head office has been silent, publishing only dry press releases dedicated to the promotion of new products: toys, TV series and films. The congratulations of the actors and various political statements that the studio liked to make in the past are completely gone. Even the verdict in the case George Floyd was also ignored.
It is interesting that on the YouTube channel of the studio, only videos related to the new animated series are not drowning in dislikes “Rejected batch“(The bad batch), for which is responsible Dave Filoniin charge of The Mandalorian, “Clone wars“(The clone wars) and “Insurgents“(Rebels).
Gina Carano herself dealt a blow to Lucasfilm’s reputation. Being bullied, the actress did not sprinkle ashes on her head, but gave back in public space, making several statements criticizing the “cancellation culture” in Hollywood, as well as announcing the production of her own film, which is being developed in collaboration with the portal Daily wire…
However, in recent weeks, a strange mess has begun to be observed in the Disney camp. The silence of the Lucasfilm press service has already been mentioned above, but the matter did not stop there.
So, suddenly the TV channel National Geographic nevertheless decided to show on May 10 an episode of “Star Survival with Bear Grylls” with Gina Carano. After that, Grills personally published a statement in support of the actress on social networks.
“Your stellar survival was incredible! It would be so sad not to hear your vivid story of many battles and victories,” the host wrote.
Further, Star Wars fans began to report that Kara Dune figures reappeared in stores in the United States, and this is not only about Retro Collection from Hasbro, which no one withdrew from sale, but also other series. Moreover, Disney itself began selling toys.
Due to the events described above, fans of the franchise began to believe that Gina Carano could indeed return to the series “The Mandalorian”. A blogger gave a portion of hope Doomcock, who, citing his sources, said that Disney is allegedly in negotiations with the actress about the restoration of the contract. The information should be taken with skepticism, but the sources of the YouTube channel Midnight’s Edge also announced a backstage fight waged by The Mandalorian showrunner Jon Favreau, who created the character Karu Dune specifically for Gina Carano.
And a few weeks ago, an insider Daniel Richtman wrote that the director allegedly demands from Disney and Lucasfilm give him full creative control over MCU The Mandalorian (MandoVerse). The latter includes the series “The Mandalorian”, “Rangers of the New Republic “ (Rangers of the New Republic), “Boba Fett’s book“(The book of boba fett) and “Ahsoka“(Ahsoka). Also associated with MandoVerse are the animated series The Clone Wars, The Rebels and The Bad Batch, for which Dave Filoni is in charge.
The editor-in-chief of the portal doubted the return of Kara Dune Giant Freakin Robot Drew Ditch… He does not believe that after such a loud “divorce” and a series of humiliated Carano will forget the insults.
As an example, he cites the scandal around the director “Guardians of the Galaxy“(Guardians of the galaxy) James Gunn, whom Disney fired for old jokes about pedophilia. Then colleagues rose up to defend the director, Gann himself repented before the public for his “offense”. As a result, Disney reconsidered its decision at the insistence of the head of Marvel Kevin Feige…
But Gina Carano made it clear several times that she was not going to humiliate herself and take part in the “tours of repentance”, which are expected from her in Hollywood. Instead, the actress is willing to go against the tide.
The Midnight’s Edge writers share Deitch’s position, but point out that there are several additional factors. First, the attempt to demonize Carano by portraying her as a conservative bogeyman with anti-Semitic manners failed miserably. Neither the Americans themselves (72% of respondents called the dismissal “unfair”), nor the filmmakers who had a chance to communicate with the actress, did not believe this.
Second, it all depends on the balance of power at Lucasfilm. Kathleen Kennedy’s contract expires in fall, and Disney chairman retires in late 2023 Bob Iger… Although publicly the new president of the company Bob Chapek spoke in support of Kennedy, no one can say with certainty how events will develop further.
Many call Favreau the main contender for the new head of Lucasfilm. If he does manage to establish control over the studio, or at least MandoVerse, then he can personally try to convince Carano to return by providing additional guarantees.
The problem is that cooperation can be incomplete, limited to some kind of cameo. This is proved by the story of James Gunn (by the way, he supported the “cancellation” of Carano). Yes, Feige has added his comebacks, but the director has clearly lost interest in Marvel, hinting last year that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will be his last project in the franchise. And this year his film based on the comics comes out. DC “Suicide Squad: Mission Kick Through“(The Suicide Squad 2).
Due to the Gunn scandal, the entire concept of the MCU has undergone radical changes, which did not benefit her. If you are not aware, then initially the studio planned to focus on outer space in new films, and the director was supposed to act as its architect, assisting Feige. With Gunn’s dismissal, the focus shifted towards the multiverse.
Despite all the uncertainty, a clarification of the situation around Lucasfilm’s future plans for the development of The Mandalorian can be expected in the next six months. At the same time, Carano has recently rejected all requests for interviews from journalists. And recently she published in Twitter a motivating quote with religious overtones that fans see as a reference to The Mandalorian.
“Begin to make room for what you have prayed for, because it is already on my way“, – wrote she is.
Also Read: Disney Starts Cancellation Of The Mandalorian Star?
“Real Treasure”: Disney CEO Has No Planning To Fire Kathleen Kennedy
