In this edition of Star Wars Bits:
- Ewan McGregor and Pedro Pascal talk Star Wars
- The Mandalorian Season 3 Production Notes
- Robert Emms, Duncan Pow, and More Join Star Wars: Andor
- Michelle Ang Talks Omega in Star Wars: The Bad Batch
- Regal Robot’s Holochess Prop Replicas
- And more!
Ewan McGregor and Pedro Pascal talk Star Wars
Ewan McGregor and Pedro Pascal sat down for a 30-minute virtual chat for Variety’s Actors on Actors. McGregor, who can currently be seen in Netflix’s Halston as the famed titular fashion designer, shared a few tidbits about filming the Obi-Wan Kenobi series for Disney+, while Pedro Pascal talked about working with Grogu and The Mandalorian Season 3.
Regarding Obi-Wan Kenobi, McGregor said:
“I’ve got to be so careful. There’s no secret to when this series is being set, but I had to walk past two Stormtroopers. I realized I’ve never acted with a Stormtrooper because mine were clones, you know? It was the clone army. So I’d never seen a Stormtrooper. So I was walking past them in this scene. I turned around — and I was 6 years old again. […] And Jawas, I had another scene with a little Jawa.”
Pascal referenced a deleted scene from The Mandalorian that we might see someday:
“They didn’t keep it, but there was a moment where the puppet was warming itself near the fire, or curious about some kind of fire coming out of a jet. And I said, “Don’t get too close.” And then whoever’s doing the remote literally had the puppet look at me and back off and be like, “Oh, OK.” And it was kind of unbelievable. It was a really good scene partner.”
The most intriguing part of the chat is when Pascal casually mentions that filming on Season 3 of The Mandalorian hasn’t started yet — more on that below!
The Mandalorian Season 3 Production Notes
According to Collider, the third season of The Mandalorian isn’t heading into production any time soon. The outlet reports that Season 3 will begin filming at the end of this year or early 2022. As a result, the season will not premiere on Disney+ until late 2022. The delay in the filming timeline may have something to do with conflicting production schedules as the Los Angeles stages are currently in use by the Obi-Wan Kenobi series. Another factor may be Pascal’s commitment to the HBO adaptation of The Last of Us, which is slated to start production in July.
While I trust Collider’s sources, I find this news to be surprising, as I had reason to believe — along with a few notable Star Wars scoopers — that Season 3 had been in production for a while now. Either way, until Lucasfilm officially comments on the matter, this is all speculation. The Book of Boba Fett, considered the next chapter of The Mandalorian saga, has wrapped production and will be more than enough to keep us occupied when it premieres on Disney+ this December.
Temuera Morrison Talks The Book of Boba Fett
Speaking of The Book of Boba Fett, Temuera Morrison sat down for an interview with Rotten Tomatoes and dropped some information on the upcoming series:
“Well, we can’t say too much, but we’re going to see his past and where he’s been since The Empire Strikes Back. Somebody pointed out he’s been kind of stuck in this one place, and now’s the time to actually go back in time and check out his journey and find out more about him.”
Robert Emms and Duncan Pow Join Star Wars: Andor
Last week we reported that Robert Emms, known for his roles on HBO’s Chernobyl and His Dark Materials, will have a supporting role in the upcoming Star Wars: Andor series for Disney+.
On Instagram, Star Wars scooper Bespin Bulletin “confirmed” another addition to the cast. Duncan Pow will reprise his role as Ruescott Melshi from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. A close friend of Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), Melshi was a veteran soldier who died during the Battle of Scarif.
Set five years before the events of Rogue One, the series, created by Tony Gilroy, follows rebel spy Cassian Andor during the formative years of the Rebellion. The cast also includes Stellan Skarsgård, Kyle Soller, Genevieve O’Reilly, Denise Gough, Adria Arjona, and Fiona Shaw.
Also, if Reddit is to be believed, Forrest Whittaker will be reprising his role as Onderonian resistance fighter Saw Gerrera. Apparently, Skarsgård was on a Swedish radio show where he mentioned filming a “juicy scene” with Forrest Whittaker on Andor.
And finally, according to The Direct, Ben Mendelsohn will reprise his role as Orson Krennic in Star Wars: Andor. Mendelsohn’s rumored role in the series has yet to be confirmed by Disney and Lucasfilm.
Michelle Ang Talks Omega in Star Wars: The Bad Batch
If you’ve been watching Star Wars: The Bad Batch, you’ve already met Omega, the newest member of Clone Force 99. Now meet the actresses behind the character: Michelle Ang! Ang, who is of Chinese/Malaysian descent, was encouraged to use her native New Zealand accent, an homage to fellow Kiwi Temuera Morrison, who originated the role of Jango Fett and the clone soldiers in the prequels. StarWars.com has an excellent interview with the actress, which you can read a preview of below:
“The idea of looking or seeming inconsequential, but feeling like you’ve got so much to contribute,” she adds with a laugh. “I think just as a woman of color and someone who maybe isn’t a traditional sort of television star or movie star or whatever, you know, there have been times in my personal professional life where I’ve felt like, ‘I’ve got so much to offer, I just want you to give me a chance!’ So I think that aspect of Omega and I converge quite a bit.” She also finds she and Omega share similar outlooks in other ways. “I’m someone who really likes to look at the world and see people and give people the benefit of the doubt and take all the richness…. I’m not really much of a cynic in my real-world life and I think that’s a wonderful quality that I can bring to Omega in the sense that she’s also quite an optimist. But hers has more to do with innocence and youth.”
Speaking of The Bad Batch, StarWars.com has all the information on how you can make your own batch of cinnamon donuts inspired by Wrecker’s cuddly Tooka doll, Lula.
Star Wars: The High Republic Virtual Event
The next wave of Star Wars: The High Republic stories hit shelves later this month. To celebrate, the five architects of the books and comics are coming together for a special virtual event.
Join Cavan Scott, Claudia Gray, Daniel José Older, Charles Soule, and Justina Ireland in conversation Monday, June 28 at 6 p.m. EST presented by Barnes & Noble. The event is free, but registration is required to attend!
During the hour-long discussion, the authors of Light of the Jedi, A Test of Courage, Into the Dark, Marvel’s Star Wars: The High Republic, and IDW’s Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures will provide a sneak peek at their newest books and comics, including The Rising Storm, Race to Crashpoint Tower, Out of the Shadows, and more!
Regal Robot’s Holochess Prop Replicas
Regal Robot has meticulously developed prop replicas of the original stop-motion puppets used in filming the Dejarik holochess sequences in the Star Wars Saga. Each resin creature is hand-painted and 1:1 scale to the props, with lineage to those original puppets! The four sets available are:
- Set 1 – The Body Slam – Mantellian Savrip™ & Kintan Strider™
- Set 2 – Molator™ & Houjix™
- Set 3 – K’lor’slug™ & Ng’ok™
- Set 4 – Ghhhk™ & Monnok™
Regal Robot’s replicas were prototyped using the digital files that Phil Tippett’s team created in 2015, when they used 3D scanning and photogrammetry of original props used in Star Wars: A New Hope to accurately recreate the wildly imaginative creatures he and Jon Berg hand-sculpted in 1977.
Using these files, along with additional reference material provided by Lucasfilm and never-before-seen photos which Tippett had saved from 1977, Regal Robot’s artists created incredibly detailed replicas, taking great care to maintain the integrity and lineage of each. You can order yours here, and be sure to check out the video below for a closer look at these beauties!
This Week! in Star Wars
On This Week! in Star Wars, host Kristin Baver is back on set at the Lucasfilm offices to give us all the latest Star Wars news:
“We mark our calendars for a virtual hangout with the authors of Star Wars: The High Republic, and Obi-Wan Kenobi says “hello there” to Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes. Plus, Dee Bradley Baker breaks down his process for giving Wrecker his voice for Star Wars: The Bad Batch streaming on Disney+.”
And that’s it for this edition of Star Wars Bits! If you have something cool from the Star Wars universe that should be included in this column, reach out on Twitter!
The post Star Wars Bits: The Mandalorian, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, Andor, The Bad Batch, and More! appeared first on /Film.
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