The Mandalorian star Giancarlo Esposito reveals his favorite co-star on the Star Wars series is Gina Carano, even despite her firing earlier this year. Esposito and Carano make up two different sides of The Mandalorian, with Esposito portraying the villainous Moff Gideon and Carano playing reluctant hero Cara Dune. Both have had pivotal roles in the show's first two seasons, but while Esposito is definitely set to return in The Mandalorian season 3, Carano's time in the galaxy far, far away was cut short earlier this year.
Carano had come under fire for controversial social media posts. The conservative actress was against masks in the face of the coronavirus pandemic and also made statements that were deemed to be transphobic and anti-Semitic. As the online outcry against her grew, Lucasfilm fired Carano from The Mandalorian and any potential spin-offs she was set to appear in. Cara Dune will be retired instead of recast, and it remains to be seen if The Mandalorian will acknowledge her in the future. For her part, Carano has moved on to other projects, and there have been fans who criticized the decision to let her go even as others celebrated it.
Politics aside, there's one Mandalorian star who is proudly showing his affection for Carano. Speaking at FAN EXPO Denver (via Joe Turner), Esposito answered the question of who he likes working with the most on The Mandalorian by giving his unabashed support to Carano. He avoided commenting on her firing or where they might disagree in their personal views, instead just explaining why he liked acting opposite her. Esposito said:
I have to say, and this may be... Okay, I'll say it without hesitation: Gina Carano. I'm not gonna weigh in on any of that in particular other than, any of her political beliefs or what she said, whether I think it's inappropriate or appropriate or not. We as actors probably sometimes - I know for me - I should just shut my mouth. But sometimes I can't. I gotta say what I believe because it has to go on record. I loved working with her. She's warm and beautiful and wonderful, and you know, I don't care what her politics are. I love the fact that she came to acting late and that she was so raw and original and beautiful, and I just think she's a lovely person. So I shout her out and say she's one of my favorites.
Esposito joined The Mandalorian's Armorer actress Emily Swallow in offering public support for Carano following her firing. Like Esposito, Swallow sidestepped the topic of what happened and focused on Carano's personality on set. For those who work on The Mandalorian, this has to be a difficult situation to navigate, and it's understandable that some of them would've still enjoyed working with Carano even despite having opposing views. Carano seemed to feel the same, as after her firing she insisted she still had love for Mandalorian lead Pedro Pascal.
Regardless of the personal feelings of the cast, filming on The Mandalorian season 3 has commenced without Carano on board. It will be strange to have a season of the Disney+ series without Carano's involvement, seeing as she was a major part of the first several episodes. Still, Pascal's Din Djarin is bound to have his hands full with Moff Gideon when The Mandalorian returns, so perhaps her absence won't be felt too strongly. Fans will just have to wait and see for themselves.
Source: FAN EXPO Denver (via Joe Turner)