With both Gina Carano preparing to return to MMA and Pedro Pascal heading back to Star Wars this May, renewed attention is falling on the controversy surrounding Carano’s 2021 firing from Lucasfilm. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Carano reflected on the experience and shared her thoughts on Kathleen Kennedy, who led the studio when she was abruptly dismissed.
Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano at a press conference for their upcoming MMA fight – YouTube @Most_Valuable_Promotions
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Carano said the ordeal took a toll on her. “I was in a horrific condition, just physically and a bit emotionally,” she said. “I kind of lost my way and was just depressed.” Now, she says she is ready to take on new opportunities.
Aftermath and Fallout
As Cara Dune on the Disney+ series The Mandalorian, Gina Carano was poised to become a key figure in the expanding Star Wars universe. That came to a sudden end when Lucasfilm fired her over a social media post.
“Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future,” the company said. “Nevertheless, her social media posts denigrating people based on their cultural and religious identities are abhorrent and unacceptable.”
Gina Carano is Cara Dune in THE MANDALORIAN, season two, exclusively on Disney+
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Backed by Elon Musk, Carano filed a lawsuit. “I’m not able to talk about the details of the settlement,” Carano told THR. “I’m not able to talk about anything regarding it.” However, she went on to highlight a sentence in Disney’s statement after the settlement. The company said Gina Carano was “always well respected by her directors, co-stars and staff,” and that it looked “forward to identifying opportunities to work together.”
It was a line Carano suggested had been overlooked in the aftermath. “Nobody really picked it up,” she said. “But it’s such a remarkable contrast from that first very horrendous statement that they had put out years earlier. I don’t recall Disney really doing that a lot at the time. That speaks leagues.”
Gina Carano at the 2015 San Diego Comic Con International – Wikimedia Commons
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So far, Carano has given no indication that she will return to Star Wars. However, she said she hopes The Mandalorian and Grogu is a box office success this summer and spoke warmly of her former director. “Jon Favreau directed it, and he’s a good man,” she said. “He’s a great storyteller. He’s an amazing artist.”
Not every relationship Gina Carano developed working on The Mandalorian has remained intact.
Diverging Paths and Public Perception
In the lead-up to her firing from Lucasfilm, Pedro Pascal reportedly encouraged Gina Carano to give in to studio pressure. Around the same time, he had also made politically charged social media posts in the opposite direction, with no public professional consequences. Carano, however, stood her ground.
Pedro Pascal at Star Wars Celebration – YouTube, Star Wars
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Though Pascal never publicly criticized her, Carano said they have not spoken since their castmate Carl Weathers died in February 2024. “But no,” she said. “Me and Pedro don’t keep in touch.” While she said nothing more in the interview, many fans who followed the controversy still find the different outcomes of their social media posts difficult to forget.
Carano Picks Her Fights
At the time of Carano’s firing, Kathleen Kennedy was still president of Lucasfilm. When asked about her, Carano simply said, “I wish her the best.” She added that she hopes Kennedy, who has had a long career in Hollywood, writes a book or becomes the subject of a documentary. “You never know what somebody else is going through,” Carano said.
Kathleen Kennedy at Star Wars Celebration 2023 – Jeff Spicer/Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Disney
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It was a thoughtful, measured response that echoed a statement Carano had made earlier in the interview: “I would really like to see all of this turmoil within the Star Wars fandom kind of come to an end. It just feels like it’s a never-ending war.”
Ultimately, Carano’s tone suggests that she has moved beyond old battles. Her next fight will be in the MMA arena that first made her famous. Yet for her fans, the more interesting question may be what comes next.
Are you surprised Gina Carano doesn’t keep in touch with Pedro Pascal? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
