Unsavory posts? Taunting? Freezing up?
Some actors fell to the Dark Side and got fired from one of the most
iconic franchises of all time. Keep watching to see the Star Wars actors who got the boot.
Currently, Gina Carano is the most high-profile name in Star Wars,
mostly because she was fired from The Mandalorian, the most high-profile project
in Star Wars. The former mixed martial artist, who served as Din Djarin's ally Cara Dune,
was dropped from the show for repeated impolitic statements on social media.
In the past, she posted statements that have been viewed as anti-mask and transphobic,
but the Tweet that broke the internet's back compared the current American political climate
to Nazi Germany. It's a good rule of thumb to avoid comparing anything to Nazi Germany,
and Carano violated that maxim in a big way. She posed the rhetorical question:
"Jews were beaten in the streets, not by Nazi soldiers but by their
neighbors ... even by children. Because history is edited, most people today
don't realize that to get to the point where Nazi soldiers could easily round up
thousands of Jews, the government first made their own neighbors hate them
simply for being Jews. How is that any different from hating someone for their political views?"
Many readers understandably took offense at the comment and
demanded she be fired from her job, and Disney obliged.
Even though the Star Wars franchise started on the big screen, it has found surprising
success on the small screen, as well. Before The Mandalorian was even a glint in Jon Favreau's eye,
shows like The Clone Wars and Rebels demonstrated
the viability of the franchise in TV form. However, these shows weren't
without their own controversies — especially the animated Star Wars series, Resistance.
Star Wars Resistance takes place before and during The Force Awakens, and includes
a few familiar characters, including General Leia Organa. Originally, Rachel Butera was supposed to
voice this cel-shaded incarnation — not surprising since Butera previously voiced Leia in Star Wars:
Battlefront 2. But at the last minute, Butera was scuttled and replaced by Carolyn Hennesy.
While Disney never made an official statement, the running theory is that Rachel Butera was fired
for posting a video that mocked Dr. Christine Blasey Ford,
the sexual assault victim who testified against then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh".
Butera's Twitter account has since been deleted, increasing the intrigue surrounding this one.
"You're demoted." Since Star Wars is a sci-fi epic,
spaceship dogfights come with the territory. As with dogfights on Earth,
the best pilots tend to emerge victorious. While Luke Skywalker is a skilled pilot
thanks to his connection with the Force, you can't find a better non-Jedi pilot than Wedge Antilles.
Despite the character's legacy, his beginnings were a little rocky in the casting department.
Initially, Antilles was portrayed by Colin Higgins. He's the Antilles audiences see in
the Rebel briefing during Star Wars: Episode IV. While Higgins had previous acting experience,
it was all on TV where the cast gets to rehearse. According to Gerald Home who
played Tessek from Return of the Jedi, the film didn't have rehearsals, so Higgins struggled with
his dialogue — which consisted of one sentence. Eventually, Higgins spoke a line that was shorter
than intended. After only one day of struggling, Higgins was let go and replaced by Denis Lawson.
Ironically, when Lawson originally auditioned for the role of Wedge, he lost it to Colin Higgins.
Still, this firing and recasting earned Higgins the moniker of "Fake Wedge," and eventually
the anthology book From a Certain Point of View retconned Higgins as Col Takbright.
Some of Star Wars' most important roles have gone to puppeteers.
Everyone knows about Mark Hamill, but without people like the late Kenny Baker,
non-human characters such as R2-D2 would have never been possible.
One of those talented puppeteers was almost lost thanks to Harrison Ford.
Tim Rose brought numerous characters such as Salacious B. Crumb and Admiral Ackbar to life
throughout the original Star Wars trilogy. Not surprising, since Rose studied under the great
Jim Henson. But that didn't mean bupkis to Ford, especially after Rose and the other puppeteers
laughed during the famous scene where Han Solo is unfrozen from carbonite. After Ford complained,
Rose ribbed Ford's complaint, which everyone found funny except for Ford. He overheard
the ribbing and said he wouldn't step on stage until the guy who made fun of him was fired. So,
an assistant director told Rose that he was fired. Except it was all for show.
In truth, Rose was allowed to keep working on the movies, but whenever anyone asked him,
he had to say he was the new guy to satisfy Harrison Ford. For the rest of his Star Wars
career, Rose wanted to apologize, but he only got to see Ford while in full Ackbar costume,
and it's difficult to talk when you're trapped in a heavy alien squid puppet.
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