Gina Carano Confirmed That Star Wars Rumor You Heard Is False
Alongside the likes of Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin, Giancarlo Esposito as Moff Gideon, and the late, great Carl Weathers as Greef Karga — one of his top five most important roles — Gina Carano was situated as one of the faces of "The Mandalorian." For the first two seasons, she features as the tough-as-nails Cara Dune, a former Rebel operative who later joins the New Republic. However, she was fired from Lucasfilm in 2021 due to her insensitive comments on social media and the subsequent backlash. Since then, her return to the "Star Wars" fold hasn't appeared likely, though rumors have swirled online that Carano is genuinely open to returning to the galaxy far, far away.
Despite the prevalence of these rumors, and sources claiming that Carano had expressed her willingness to work with Lucasfilm again during a FAN EXPO Philadelphia panel, the actor has since struck the idea down. "If you didn't hear it from my mouth. Don't believe the headlines. Look at the full story, not their sound bites they use for cheap attention. Distinguish good journalism from the posers pushing agendas. Big mistake, huge," she wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, criticizing the publications that picked the story up.
All in all, this isn't too surprising. Disney maintains that Carano's firing was justified, and the situation between the two parties hasn't improved since the "Mandalorian" actor was let go.
Carano and Disney's relationship has only continued to sour
Years have now passed since Gina Carano was fired from Lucasfilm, with Cara Dune being written out of "The Mandalorian" for Season 3. In that time, she has worked on such projects as the films "Terror on the Prairie" and "My Son Hunter," and the "Star Wars" franchise has expanded with such efforts as "Obi-Wan Kenobi," the Easter egg-filled "Andor" Season 1, and "Tales of the Empire," to name a few. While it appeared that the Carano-Disney saga ended long ago, the situation took on an added dimension in February 2024.
That month, Carano elected to take Disney to court over her 2021 firing, which she claimed was wholly unjust. She claimed wrongful discharge and sexual discrimination in the suit, citing that her male co-stars were not punished for their potentially inflammatory social media posts. Carano claimed that she was "harassed and defamed" for her political beliefs, which just so happened not to be in line with those of the company. According to The Hollywood Reporter, she sought $75,000 and a recast on "The Mandalorian. In response, Disney motioned for the lawsuit to be dismissed.
Evidently, there's still plenty of bad blood between Disney and Gina Carano — so much so that it's not at all surprising to learn that she doesn't desire to work with the company again in the immediate future.