Ming-Na Wen's stint as Fennec Shand was supposed to be short-lived as the character was meant to die in The Mandalorian season 1. Introduced in episode 5 titled "The Gunslinger," the bounty hunter was the subject of Toro Calican's mission when he recruited Din Djarin for it. But, their partnership quickly went awry as Toro shifted his sights on Mando who was still being hunted after he snuck out Baby Yoda from Nevarro.
At the end of the said outing, Fennec was left in the dunes of Tatooine after Toro shot her in the stomach until it was revealed that someone came to her rescue. The Mandalorian kept this mystery unanswered coming into its second season, revealing that she was indeed saved by Boba Fett later on in the show's sophomore year. But, as it turns out, this wasn't going to be the case. Instead, Fennec was meant to die then and there, with Wen only signing up for a one-time appearance in the Star Wars show which was such a massive treat for her already being a life-long fan.
In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant for Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Wen revealed Fennec wasn't supposed to survive Toro's gunshot. But, as she spent time with producer Dave Filoni, who also directed the aforementioned episode, her role expanded. Not only did they bond over their shared love for the space saga, but they also learned that they grew up in the same neighborhood.
Fennec Shand was just supposed to be a one-off character. That’s what I signed up for. There were no other ideas of her surviving that nasty blaster to the gut treatment that she got. I think it was just maybe a combination of it being written in the stars, the Force was with me, all of it - you know, Dave Filoni was directing “Gunslinger” at the time. We got to know each other - I didn’t know Dave before then - and we connected on so many levels, because both of us are such big Star Wars fans. And then we discovered that we both grew up in the same neighborhood and then we went to the same high school. So I think it was just a combination of all of it, and maybe me being really persistent that she didn’t die.
Not only did Fennec's role in The Mandalorian get expanded as she returned in season 2, revealed to be the right-hand person of Boba Fett, but Wen also voices the role in The Bad Batch. Given where the animated series fit in the Star Wars timeline, it gives a good idea of what the character's past was like long before she encountered Toro and Din in Tatooine. Aside from that, Fennec's story will continue with the character tipped to play an important role in The Mandalorian's first spinoff, The Book of Boba Fett. Filming for the series has wrapped earlier this month, with the project set to drop on Disney+ later this year.
It's uncertain what else lies in the future for Wen and Fennec in Star Wars. The Book of Boba Fett can run for multiple seasons which almost guarantees her existence in the franchise for a longer time. She might even find herself involved again in the events of The Mandalorian season 3. Whatever the case may be, the fact that the character is slowly becoming one of the most important players in ongoing Star Wars storytelling is already impressive considering that she was meant to only appear in one episode.
