Lucy Lawless thinks 'The Mandalorian' fans' campaign to have her replace Gina Carano actually hurt her 'Star Wars' chances
- Gina Carano was fired from her role in "The Mandalorian" after a series of controversies.
- Fans led a campaign to have Lucy Lawless replace Carano as Cara Dune.
- However, Lawless was already connected to a "Star Wars" role at the time and thought the campaign hurt her chances as it may have been seen as "pandering."
Lucy Lawless has commented on the fan-led campaign that pled Disney to cast her as Gina Carano's replacement in "The Mandalorian." Lawless said she thinks the campaign actually hurt her chances of landing a role in "Star Wars."
Carano was fired from her role as Cara Dune in "The Mandalorian," a part she played in both of the two seasons, after a series of social media controversies that included comparing the political divide in the US to Nazi Germany and mocking transgender pronouns.
Fans then led a campaign arguing that Lawless, who starred in "Xena: Warrior Princess," should be cast as the new Cara Dune.
Lawless commented on this campaign in a recent interview with the British newspaper Metro.
"Well to be honest with you, I was already in discussions about something on - it wasn't 'The Mandalorian' - something Star Wars-affiliated," Lawless said. "[The fan campaign] might have hurt me in some way, because then [Lucasfilm] couldn't hire me because it would seem to be pandering to… I'm just guessing here, I don't know anything."
She continued: "But, in some ways, it can be unhelpful, because if they pander to this fan group, then how are you going to pander to every other fan group, do you know what I mean?"
Lawless went on to say that she felt her name "became political" as the idea of her fan casting only emerged from Carano's exit from "The Mandalorian," which was due to her controversial comments. However, Lawless is still grateful that the fans felt so enthusiastic about her potential casting to lead a campaign.
"But that's the way the world is and they meant it out of love, and I thank the fans for their fealty to me," Lawless said. "I haven't thought about that since, so it hasn't given me any pain, but that was my thought at the time, like, ooh, this makes me look like a political appointment, and not an actress."
It is unconfirmed what other project Lawless was discussing with Disney about starring in, but she does already have some "Star Wars" acting experience on her resume. She had a voice role in two episodes of "Star Wars Resistance," as the Queen of the Aeosians.
Meanwhile, the makers of "The Mandalorian" have since said that Cara Dune won't be recast. Instead, the character will simply be phased out of the series altogether. The third season won't arrive on Disney+ until next year, but a spin-off from the show, "The Book of Boba Fett," will premiere at the end of this year.