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Back in February 2021, Gina Carano, the actress behind The Mandalorian supporting character of Cara Dune was let go by Disney and Lucasfilm following various controversial and divisive posts she shared on social media. Following Carano’s departure from The Mandalorian, she was dropped by her agency, UTA, and Hasbro stopped manufacturing Cara Dune figures. At the time of Carano’s departure, the scripts for the third season of The Mandalorian were actively being worked on, and production began in the Fall of 2021.
One of the questions fans had for the highly anticipated third season was what would become of Cara Dune? It seemed unlikely that Disney and Lucasfilm had recast the role as there’d been no announcement of such. Some fans theorised that perhaps the character would be killed off screen or that Dune may be on missions with the New Republic, given how her character played arc played out in The Mandalorian season two and that the character was even rumoured to be part of a Mando spin-off titled, Rangers of the New Republic. Now, two years after Carano’s departure, fans are finally getting answers.
During a chat with Deadline, Rick Famuyiwa, who was promoted to an executive producer role for The Mandalorian season three as Mando creator, Jon Favreau, and his writing partner, Dave Filoni, were busy working on Skeleton Crew and Ahsoka, the question of Cara’s Dune was addressed. Famuyiwa told Deadline that “Cara [Dune] was a big part and continues to be part of the world”, and that Jon Favreau took time to think about the future of the character and had discussions with fellow creatives of The Mandalorian season three, including Rick Famuyiwa. Famuyiwa mentions that despite Dune’s absence, the heart of the show is the relationship between Din Djarin and Grogu and that the season is in service of that and fellow Mandalorian’s.
Executive producer, Dave Filoni, added that “it’s a big galaxy” and that many characters are fighting for screen time. Filoni adds that Cara Dune is a “great character” and a character that was “vital to Din Djarin’s beginnings”, but viewers will have to wait and see if he’s “evolved beyond that.” Filoni reaffirmed that the season will focus a lot on Mandalore, fellow Mandalorian’s, the relationship between Djarin and Grogu, as well as characters he’s met since Bo Katan Kryze that’ll take “more prominence” which will make sense as to where Din Djarin’s arc is going.
Given the wording used by both Famuyiwa and Filoni, it appears that Cara Dune will not appear in the third season of The Mandalorian which begins on Wednesday. It seems that Dune still exists in the world and timeline in which Favreau and Filoni are operating and that they’re unlikely to kill the character off screen, but given how Filoni mentions the possibility of Din Djarin evolving beyond that relationship and Mandalorian relationships taking a much more prominent role, it’s unlikely we’ll see Cara Dune this season, if ever.
The Mandalorian season three begins on March 1st and will be streaming exclusively on Disney+.
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