Fans Want Another ‘Mandalorian’ Actress to Replace Gina Carano

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Posted on by Rebekah Barton 14 Comments
female fight scene mandalorian season 2 finale

Credit: Lucasfilm/Disney

Yesterday evening, following months of controversy, it was confirmed that The Mandalorian actress Gina Carano was fired by Lucasfilm and the Walt Disney Company.

fennec shand cara dune mandalorian the believer
Credit: Lucasfilm/Disney

The news came after Carano shared another controversial post to her Twitter account, leading the hashtag #FireGinaCarano to once again trend on the social media website.

This is far from the first time Carano posted a Tweet regarding her social and political opinions, with numerous previous posts of hers garnering mixed responses from fans.

Although, it is worth noting that the former Muay Thai and women’s MMA fighter has had thousands of supporters on the platform — these Twitter users have gotten #WeLoveCaraDune and #IStandWithGinaCarano trending at various points, as well. They have even started a petition to bring her character, Cara Dune, back to the Star Wars universe.

gina carano
Credit: Gina Carano Instagram

Related: ‘Star Wars’ Actress Gina Carano Responds to Haters With Yoda Meme

Now that Carano has been officially fired from the Star Wars franchise, many fans of the Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni series would like to see another Mandalorian actress take her place.

Ming-Na Wen — who has a long history with Disney and was also the voice of Mulan in the 1998 animated film — has played sharpshooter Fennec Shand in both seasons of The Mandalorian so far.

Next, she is slated to do voice work in the animated series Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and to appear in the upcoming spinoff series The Book of Boba Fett alongside Temuera Morrison’s bounty hunter character.

ming na wen fennec
Credit: Disney/Lucasfilm

Related: Ming-Na Wen Responds to Stunning ‘Ming-Nalorian’ Fan Art

Here’s what some Mandalorian fans have been saying online.

In response to a post about the remaining women of The Mandalorian, Harry wrote:

FENNEC SHAND SOLO SHOW

Another user supported Fennec Shand on a post lamenting Cara Dune’s demise:

Pfff she was kinda cool I guess like strong female character that wasn’t even forced, but she’s no longer necessary and Fennec Shand is clear

Chris Blake posted a similar repsonse:

The character had potential, but between weak writing and bad acting, rarely delivered afterwards. I’d rather see them give more time to Ming-Na Wen and Fennec Shand, as she did a great job in a tiny role and deserves more.

Related: ‘The Mandalorian’ Is “So Much Bigger Than All of Us”

Parker Gray wrote:

We can all agree that Gina Carano’s opinions and statements are just outrageous and flawed and disgusting.

We can also agree that she’s the worst actor in the The Mandalorian and now we’re all confused why she was hired in the first place. 

And that we want more Min-Na Wen.

Related: ‘The Mandalorian’: Gina Carano’s Cara Dune Could Be Recast or Removed Altogether

Zane posted:

#FireGinaCarano stan Ming-Na Wen instead

Related: Ming-Na Wen, Mark Hamill Share Gratitude Following ‘Mandalorian’ Scene

A conversation about Gina Carano’s Cara Dune between Twitter users Vira-Go Fish and fanster went as follows:

Same. I’m angry that I actually liked Cara before this crap came to light, now I can’t even look at her. 

The reply read:

I find Ming-Na Wen’s character so much more compelling anyways [sic: anyway], just give her the screen time instead. 

Related: Disney Legend Ming-Na Wen Discusses Her Past Roles

Another conversation about the ongoing situation stated:

I was hoping they’d phase her [Carano] out in favor of the queen ming-na wen

The reply read:

that would be the smartest, easiest decision they could make. gc [Gina Carano] will never be even a 1/100th as cool as Ming-Na Wen. 

Related: Epcot welcomes Cal Ripken, Jr. and Ming-Na Wen to the list of 2016 Candlelight Processional narrators!

Finally, one last Star Wars fan shared the following:

Everyday I wake up and am reminded that Ming-Na Wen is in Star Wars

Related: ‘Mandalorian’ Cast Speaks Out on Gina Carano and Her Future With Show

Carano’s character, Cara Dune, was reportedly set to have a leading role in the upcoming Mandalorian spinoff series Rangers of the New Republic.

Wen, as we shared earlier, has already been confirmed for an entirely different spinoff set on Tatooine.

Therefore, it isn’t as easy as it may sound to simply replace what would have been Carano’s scenes with more of Wen’s Fennec Shand. Nonetheless, the idea is intriguing to many viewers of the show, and Ming-Na Wen has a massive fan base within the Star Wars community.

women of the mandalorian
Credit: Lucasfilm/Disney

Related: ‘Mandalorian’ Season 3: Production Dates, Casting, & Everything You Should Know

When we last saw both characters in The Mandalorian Season 2 finale, they were working alongside Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) and Koska Reeves (Sasha Banks/Mercedes Varnado) to help titular Mandalorian Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) rescue Grogu from the Imperial remnant led by Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito).

Ultimately, the unlikely band of companions was assisted by a most unexpected helper — none other than iconic Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker, played by a CGI version of original trilogy actor Mark Hamill.

At this time, The Mandalorian Season 3 and two of it’s spinoffs — the aforementioned Rangers of the New Republic and Ahsoka, featuring Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka Tano — do not have release dates. The Book of Boba Fett will air in December 2021.

What do you think? Would you like to see more Ming-Na Wen in the Star Wars universe?

This article has been updated since it was originally published. 

Rebekah Barton

When she's not planning her next Disney trip, Rebekah can be found spending time with her family, shopping for Lilly Pulitzer, buried in a good book, or doing yoga. She never misses Jeopardy and alternately wishes she lived in Beast's castle or was making the Kessel Run in the Millennium Falcon.

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