CinemaBlend participates in affiliate programs with various companies. We may earn a commission when you click on or make purchases via links.
One of the biggest shows on TV right now is the first live-action Star Wars TV series, Disney+'s The Mandalorian. After four episodes, it's inarguable that the show's biggest star is an inanimate object that can be held in one hand. I'm talking, of course, about the adorable Baby Yoda, whose presence made a huge impact on both The Mandalorian and on the Star Wars franchise as a whole. Star Gina Carano, in particular, is quite a fan of the little bugger.
In fact, the former MMA star agrees with The Mandalorian's creator and executive producer Jon Favreau that it's virtually impossible for any of the characters to take over a scene where Baby Yoda is present. In Gina Carano's words:
When you’re acting with it, you’re just like, 'Oh, my gosh, it’s insanely cute.' These puppeteers gave it its own personality; it’s a little actor. Jon once belly-laughed and was like, 'No matter what, this little guy is going to steal the scene in every scene that he’s in. Just know that you’re all going to be number two to this.' (Laughs.) That’s our little star of the show — 100 percent. There’s no stealing a scene from Baby Yoda.
Consider, if you will, just how much viral imagery came out of just "Chapter 4." The biggest highlight of all, at least in terms of GIF creations, was no doubt Baby Yoda nonchalantly taking a sip of soup, a moment that swept the Internet by storm upon its weekend of release. But let's not also forget the early scene in Mando's ship, when Baby Yoda kept messing with the buttons; that scene provided its own meme-ready fabulousness.
Baby Yoda doesn't even need the arbitrary beeps and blorps that tiny cute droids have, or even the noises of the Porgs. All he needs is those big expressive eyes, his little hover-carriage, and some tight swaddling, and this franchise could just stick a camera on him for 30-40 minutes each week with equally rewarding results.
Gina Carano's Cara Dune was finally introduced in Episode 4, which was directed by Bryce Dallas Howard. The actress is extremely pleased and honored to have such firm footing within the Star Wars universe, and had only good things to say about her experiences with THR. She also teased that the tattoo beneath her eye is going to get a crazy-good backstory in the near-future, and that such big Hollywood names as Stephen Spielberg, the Coen brothers and Seth Rogen have all visited the Mandalorian sets during production.
Even though the world at large was completely out of the loop on the Baby Yoda front, Gina Carano says that she learned about the cutesy character's introduction after she'd already secured the gig, and that she loved the fact that his existence remained a secret. Here's how she put it:
I learned about Baby Yoda when I read the script after getting the job. When doing promotion at Star Wars Celebration, D23 and the press junket, we were already getting such a great reception, and meanwhile, we were all giving interviews to excited people and thinking, 'You don’t even know the best part of it!' (Laughs.)I think it was so smart of Jon and Kathleen Kennedy to keep it such a secret. That was just genius to have people be surprised over something they were already excited about, and now everybody is absolutely in love with this little baby.
The last month of 2020 is set to be one of the biggest ever for Star Wars fans, with the final four episodes of The Mandalorian accompanying the big screen release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. And what's more, fans likely don't need to worry about anything too detrimental happening to Baby Yoda in Season 1, since he's been seen on the Season 2 set.
Rian Johnson Wants To Direct The Mandalorian In Season 2 And That Needs To Happen
The Mandalorian airs Fridays on Disney+ at 3:01 a.m. ET. If you're in need of a subscription, just head over for a 7-day free trial, and get ready for all that Baby Yoda merch on the way.
