‘Mandalorian’ Creators Defend Fate of Gina Carano’s Cara Dune in Season 3

Season Three of Star Wars: The Mandalorian finally arrives on Disney+ on Wednesday, March 1, 2023, and Dave Filoni spoke out with executive producer Rick Famuyiwa to share how their team at Lucasfilm handled the anticipated replacement of Cast Member Gina Carano.

The MMA fighter turned actress brought the former Republic Drop Trooper Cara Dune to life and earned the adoration of fans from her first run-in with Din Djarin (AKA Mando) in Season 1 to when she decided to settle in as a Marshal of the New Republic on the planet Nevarro.

Then came the Pandemic, and Carano was unceremoniously dropped from the show after an Instagram story relating the hate-filled attacks on those standing against lockdowns, mask mandates and vaccine mandates to the prejudice European Jews received in the lead-up to the Holocost.

Lucasfilm released a statement after the post came to light in 2021, saying, “Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future. Nevertheless, her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.”

Read More: Gina Carano Fans Call Out Hollywood Double Standard Once Again

“I’m not the only one that’s ever been bullied by this company, and I know that so deeply,” Carano said in an interview. “I could share a story which would turn things around in the media but I can’t because it would sell out a friend … everyone is afraid of losing their job.”

Despite Lucasilm receiving its own backlash for the decision, showrunners refused to return her to the show, and she has since partered with the Daily Wire on other projects.

But while Carano’s Mandalorian story seems to have come to an end, the fate of her character’s story remains up in the air while Filoni and Jon Favreau were able to logically leave her out of  the Mando-and-Grogu-focused episode of Book of Boba Fett, many expect some resolve to the issue in Season 3.

Filoni and executive producer Rick Famuyiwa sat down with Deadline to share that Cara Dune won’t appear in the upcoming season.

“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,” Famuyiwa said. “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.”

Filoni jumped in to all but literally confirmed that the story has moved on from her, with more screentime needing to be devoted to other returning and new characters.

“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.”

“Now Season 3 is mainly dealing with Mandalorians and the Mandalorian saga, the Mandalorian tale,” Filoni added. “(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.”

So, it seems that fans can at least rest asured knowing that showrunners are not going to recast Cara Dune. They are not going to give her any screen time at all. But only time will tell at this point just what is in store for Star Wars fans in this latest season.