The Mandalorian's Cara Dune actress Gina Carano blasted Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy on social media.
Following a series of controversial right-wing statements, Carano was fired from her Star Wars role amid reports she was set to lead the planned Rangers of the Old Republic spin-off.
Her firing came amid the exit of countless Star Wars creatives under Kathleen Kennedy. These struggles have led to plenty of backlash against the galactic boss and calls for her firing, especially following mixed reactions to the sequel trilogy.
Gina Carano Blasts Lucasfilm's Kathleen Kennedy
Gina Carano shared a clip on X (formerly Twitter) from a recent South Park episode that made fun of Kathleen Kennedy and jokingly blamed her for the mass backlash to some of Disney and Lucasfilm's latest movies.
The fired jested how Kennedy would push for censorship for the "hilarious episode" and attempt to hide backlash:
"This is the part where KK demands any YouTubers get censored off of YouTube for sharing and laughing at this hilarious episode, she’ll have YouTube disable the thumbs down option because of the ratio she’ll receive..."
She added how Kennedy would utilize major Hollywood news trades to bombard the South Park creators with hate:
"... then she’ll have her publicist ghouls make sure Variety and Hollywood Reporter run hit pieces about the South Park creators and their families smearing their names through every useful idiot she has under her thumb who would sell their soul to work for Lucasfilm..."
Carano added that Kennedy has an "online mob" who will do her bidding and share whatever message she should wish before going on to seemingly blast recent woke culture and LGBTQIA+ representation:
"she’ll activate her online mob to repeat that the South Park creators are racist, bigot, transphobes, and demand the South Park creators publicly apologize by only using words she approves of and finally she’ll demand they subject themselves to a re-education course of 45 people in the lbgtq community zoom call to sit there and listen of how badly they got their feelings hurt all over a little boop of a South Park episode. But maybe just maybe the jig is up."
In a follow-up post on X responding to a follower who stated she had "lost her mind with her post," Carano suggested her comments against Kennedy were based on her "first-hand experience:"
"Do you always call a woman crazy just because she has more first-hand experience than you & says something you don’t like or understand? Bit misogynistic don’t ya think. Tsk tsk."
She then questioned these fans' loyalty to Kennedy before revealing she was asked to "unfollow certain accounts" who opposed the Lucasfilm boss:
"Curious if your overlords pay you or do y’all just go ahead & shove your whole head straight up their ass for free? I’m guessing for free. Might want to come out for some fresh air.
For some added context, not just for you but for the people reading, one of the things your overlords asked me to do was to unfollow certain accounts because they 'said bad thing about Kathleen Kennedy.' That was a huge red flag for me."
Continuing to target Kennedy, Carano noted how the "haters" Kennedy has allegedly disliked so much may just be passionate and "caring" fans:
"If I were the head of one of the most powerful entertainment companies in the world, I would know that haters come with the territory & that maybe the 'haters' are expressing their thoughts because they actually care and caring is a good thing because as long as they care well hey, we still have something to work with. Maybe we can win their hearts back eventually & maybe they do have some good things to add to the conversation (which they do & did). And at the very least they are still buying the product. Look at Mando season 1, boom, the healing had begun."
She stated how Kennedy should "embrace [and] communicate" the views of the creatives working under her:
"If you are a proper good leader you learn how to embrace & communicate, not dictate & silence & demand your actors & directors unfollow & shame more than half of your fan base & the people who have stuck with the franchise for decades.
Side note, don’t say “The force is female” & then allow only the men to express their political views online. In fact just drop the ridiculous phrase completely."
Carano argued that Kennedy's actions have reduced interest in "one of the most beloved franchises" ever and even compared Lucasfilm to the Empire:
"One of the problems your overlords are having now is that they’ve made a lot of people completely stop caring about one of the most beloved franchises in history, all by bullying, pushing aggressive agendas & trying to silence the people criticizing them.
How are they able to tell stories they don’t understand when the ones they identify with are the Empire? They are literally trying to squash the little guys, the rebellion. No wonder the story telling is struggling."
She even claimed how Lucasfilm has "fired [and] dehumanized" people, including her, who have done "nothing wrong:"
"They fired & dehumanized people like me who did absolutely nothing wrong, all to virtue signal to people like you, the Yes Men. But Yes Men unfortunately for you & them, do not drive culture. Maybe they were banking on the kids picking up the slack but one of the best things about this franchise is passing it from generation to generation to share, the competition is too high to throw out something as valuable as that. Why would one generation pass it on when you’ve disrespected & thrown them away?"
Her statement turned attention to how Lucasfilm is using minorities as a "shield and weapon:"
"Your overlords tried to hide behind the two opposing fan bases fighting each other instead of taking responsibility. So they encouraged the hate, all while virtue signaling they are standing up for minorities but instead using them as a shield & weapon. Funny enough just how our government works."
She continued to refer to Kennedy's "weak leadership" and noted how Disney needed to hire a new lead to bring in major changes:
"They think people will forget & yes maybe they will but for this moment they have heard the peoples voice & it shook them. They’re choosing to stick with their weak leadership who couldn’t handle YouTubers saying mean things online, when all it would’ve taken is a true leader to step in, take the reigns, take some responsibility, stop discriminating, apologize about the things that have been done wrong, step completely out of politics, be truly inclusive & they’d be back in business.. until then, they’re stuck with you, the Yes Men & their plummeting stock."
The fired actress ended her statement with a note on how "good leadership makes for a better world:"
"I’m not saying I’m right on all fronts but I am open hearted & refused to discriminate based off of powerful people telling me how to think & act & if there was something I needed to apologize for I would have in a heartbeat but I didn’t say or do anything wrong. People come up to me daily to shake my hand & thank me for taking a stand, even people who think diff.
One thing is true, good leadership makes for a better world, leading to healthier & happier people & better opportunity. Look around, we are watching the devastating effects of what bad leadership can do worldwide."
Gina Carano's Star Wars Exit Explained
At the time of Gina Carano's 2021 firing, Kathleen Kennedy acknowledged how she doesn't see Disney as having any particular political orientation but instead sees the House of Mouse as "standing for values."
Clearly, Carano had a rather negative experience in her several years under Disney and Lucasfilm. She had previously claimed Disney bullied her with her firing from the Star Wars galaxy due to her comments.
Although, up until her exit, the company clearly had faith in Carano as a star to not only grant her a major role in The Mandalorian but even once build a whole spin-off around her New Republic character.
Since then, both Rangers of the New Republic and Cara Dune herself have both, unfortunately, been tossed aside. However, some fans have continued to speculate she may eventually be recast with another actress.
The Mandalorian is streaming now on Disney+.
