Despite the success of Disney+’s The Mandalorian, one of its lead actresses has been mired in controversy, ending with the two sides parting way. Now, it appears that Gina Carano has found a new project to join after being booted out of a galaxy far, far away.
Just one day after being fired by Disney/Lucasfilm, it was announced that Carano has teamed up with the conservative website The Daily Wire to create a new film project. In an article published by Deadline, Carano stated that:
"The Daily Wire is helping make one of my dreams- to develop and produce my own film- come true. I cried out and my prayer was answered. I am sending out a direct message of hope to everyone living in fear of cancellation by the totalitarian mob."
The co-founder of The Daily Wire, conservative pundit Ben Shapiro, also expressed his enthusiasm to bring Carano onboard. “We could not be more excited to be working with Gina Carano, an incredible talent dumped by Disney and Lucasfilm for offending the authoritarian Hollywood Left.” Shapiro said.
Carano portrayed Cara Dune, a former Rebel shock trooper who teams up with Din Djarin throughout his adventures. Lucasfilm has not stated anything about the future of the character, but it is possible that Dune could either be written out of the show or re-cast. Despite being part of the main cast, Dune’s role in the show was not a particularly large one.
The controversy surrounding Carano began in a series of Twitter posts as far back as August 2020. Many of these Tweets promoted some widely-debunked conspiracies, such as claiming the COVID-19 pandemic was a hoax. She also tweeted numerous unsubstantiated and false claims regarding voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
The Twitter hashtag #FireGinaCarano began picking up steam this month after an Instagram post in which Carano made offensive comments about the treatment of Jewish people in Nazi Germany. Although the post was later deleted, Lucasfilm decided to sever ties with Carano and fired her yesterday, stating in a press release that:
"Gina Carano is no longer 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."
No details have yet been revealed about the movie that Carano is helping create with The Daily Wire, but it is likely to be a sounding board for conservative views. The actress, though, is also on the search for new representation, as Variety reported that she has also been dropped as a client by United Talent Agency.
Regardless, Lucasfilm will be going full steam ahead on Disney+, both with The Mandalorian and a number of other Star Wars shows currently in production. While no official release date has been revealed, it can be assumed that season 3 of The Mandalorian will likely air in 2022. In addition, another bounty hunter-centric spinoff, The Book of Boba Fett, is slated to start streaming in December 2021.