Though it’s not yet clear whether Disney and Lucasfilm would recast the role of Cara Dune on Disney+’s The Mandalorian after firing Gina Carano from the series earlier this week, several Star Wars fans already have a number of actresses in mind who would make a great replacement for Carano, and one of those is Lucy Lawless.
Lawless, who is best known for her portrayal of the title character in the hit ‘90s series Xena: Warrior Princess, instantly became a fan favorite to take over the role of Cara in season 3 of The Mandalorian after Dungeons & Dragons podcasters @SeveredSonsDnD tweeted a side-by-side photo of the actress as Xena and her current head shot in response to the trending hashtag #CancelDisneyPlus. “Instead of #canceldisneyplus, can they just cast Lucy Lawless as Cara Dune and pretend it was her the whole time?” read the caption for the photos.
Instead of #canceldisneyplus, can they just cast Lucy Lawless as Cara Dune and pretend it was her the whole time? pic.twitter.com/sOvrouGv05
— Severed Sons ❄️ A D&D Podcast (@SeveredSonsDnD) February 11, 2021
Though a few people think that 52-year-old Lawless is too old for the role, most fans believe that she will be able to play the character well despite her age.
People coming into this thread thinking Lucy Lawless bring 52 is old.
The same people bitching about Lucy being “too old” are the people who complained that Marissa Tomei at 56 (and flawless) was “too young” to play Aunt May.
Age is just a number. It’s how you live it!
— Heather is a Nerd (@followingfilms) February 11, 2021
And wonder why Cara Dune didn’t go on to destroy the remnants of the empire singlehandedly?
Lucy Lawless is badass!
Even an awesome name! pic.twitter.com/Xo2izCWuBg— Stephen Roy (@angmarsrealm) February 11, 2021
While some fans pointed out that Lawless wouldn’t do action on a daily basis anymore, others think that it shouldn’t be a problem, as there are great stunt doubles to do all the physical scenes for her.
She doesn’t love it but she was in an action role in Agents Of Shield & recently in Ash vs Evil Dead. There’s great stunt doubles & camera work now so she wouldn’t have to do anywhere near what she did for Xena. This char hasn’t been in every ep & they plan to do a timejump.
— XenaWatch (@XenaWatch) February 11, 2021
Unfortunately, even if Disney and Lucasfilm would recruit Lawless to replace Carano, it seems that the former wouldn’t be available to do it, as she’s currently shooting the second season of the Australian murder mystery series My Life Is Murder.
These are all fairly current. I’ve had the joy of meeting her in person; she’s one attractive woman, that’s for sure, and extremely talented. I don’t think she could take another role right now; she has her own show, #MyLifeIsMurder currently filming in New Zealand. pic.twitter.com/W4KV0zGBJB
— Valarie Navy Hospital Corpsman 1983-1998 Resistor (@vstew0360) February 11, 2021
Whether or not Lawless would end up taking over the role of Cara in The Mandalorian, the actress is actually already a part of the Star Wars franchise. In January 2020, Lawless provided the voice of the Aeosian Queen in season 2 of Disney Channel’s animated series Star Wars Resistance.
Aside from Lawless, fans also love the idea of replacing Carano with Lana Parrilla, the actress who played the Evil Queen/Regina Mills in the ABC fantasy drama series Once Upon a Time.
The Mandalorian season 3 has no premiere date yet, but it’s expected to debut right after the freshman run of The Book of Boba Fett, which is set to arrive on Disney+ in December.