This Week, In a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Ke Huy Quan, Pedros Big Week, Taika Embracing His Star Wars Role, and More

Welcome back to 'This Week, In a Galaxy Far, Far Away', in what must be one of the most intense weeks in the Hollywood news cycle over the past six months. As usual, we'll be looking back at the week in Star Wars land, highlighting a few topics and expanding on others, in a more informal and opinion-based tone. There's a lot to get to, so let's not waste any more time!


<h2>Star Wars Quote of the Week</h2>


There are multiple options to pick from this week, all of them from the same individual. This is Taika Waititi in an interview with Variety when asked about his Star Wars movie: “It will be … dramatic pause… a Taika Waititi film. It’s gonna piss people off (Laughs.)'



Zero surprise when the Internet was already pissed after reading the comments, which made Waititi's remarks all the more relevant. It's the same thing that happened just a few weeks ago when he joked he would never finish his Star Wars script. Do we really not know him enough yet, or are entertainment sites eager to find the next best click- and rage-bait headline to drive traffic? Disclaimer: We didn't run with it because we'd already done a story on another Taika quote, as well as an update with yet another quote, and this one didn't really add that much to the conversation.



And that's kind of the point. He knows it's going to divide people because they are already divided in a post-Love and Thunder world. The Internet may see him as the Thor 4 guy; I choose to see him as the Academy Award-winning writer behind Jojo Rabbit who also directed Hunt for the Wilderpeople and Thor: Ragnarok. I understand the hesitations, but I'm looking forward to seeing what he has in store for us. If nothing else, he's someone with a vision and something to say.



Director Taika Waititi on the set of Marvel Studios' THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER. Photo by Jasin Boland. ©Marvel Studios 2022. All Rights Reserved.



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<h2>Three Star Wars Headlines That May Have Flown Casual</h2>

• The day after Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors declined to answer a question on the Knights of the Old Republic remake announced a couple of years ago, video game insider Jeff Grubb said that the remake is pretty much dead at this point in time. (Embracer did not immediately respond to my Friday email asking for comment.) In other non-Star Wars video game news, Naughty Dog has announced a remastered version of The Last of Us Part II coming in January to PS5. Umm, can it be January already?
• Alden Ehrenreich looks back at his time on the set of Solo with a sense of maturity, realizing he was way too young to have full control of anything that was going on. A true example that talent and opportunity is not all that is needed in Hollywood. I still love his portrayal in that movie and hope he comes back at some point.
• Hot Toys continues their weekly tradition of announcing new Ahsoka 1/6 figures; this time, it's Ahsoka Tano herself. And Rosario Dawson liked our tweet that linked to the story!

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<h2>Pedro's Big Week</h2>


It's a great time to be Pedro Pascal right now, and at the same time, kind of overwhelming as well. The Internet broke in half on Wednesday when Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter finally confirmed the latest iteration of Film Twitter's new choice for Reed Richards in the upcoming Fantastic Four movie from Marvel Studios. Apparently, Pascal is indeed in negotiations with the studio to play the role, but there is one big holdout: the schedule.



Running through this fairly quickly, Pascal is currently in the middle of the shoot of Gladiator 2, which right before the strikes had set up camp in Morocco. That film is expected to resume in the coming weeks. The extent of Pascal's role is unknown at the time, but it's probably quite significant. In February, though, he might be needed in Canada to film the second season of The Last of Us. Those familiar with the second game already know that his role will be smaller this season, as he will take a backseat to Bella Ramsey's Ellie, but he still is a major part of the emotional core of the story and will have at least a couple of months worth of filming. Last, he's also supposed to shoot Zach Cregger's Weapons at some point. That was originally scheduled for the fall, but the actors' strike pushed it. Trade reports from earlier this year described it as an ensemble à la Magnolia, so Pascal may actually not have to be there the entire time.



Notice that there is one major title missing here, and it's the one we're actually interested in. The Mandalorian season 4 will start filming at some point in early 2024; actors Brendan Wayne and Katee Sackhoff recently teased a return to set soon. What's interesting, as I mentioned in that report this week, is that the Internet started to run with this crazy theory that Pascal would not be returning for the fourth season of the Disney Plus flagship series even before headlines of his Fantastic Four negotiations came out.



The truth is that Pascal was barely, if ever, on the set of season 3. He's not really needed there anymore, as stunt doubles Brendan Wayne and Lateef Crowder can do all the heavy lifting. However, that doesn't mean that Din Djarin will not have the same voice moving forward. All Pascal will have to do is step into a recording booth wherever he's shooting in the world (in fact, Lucasfilm would actually benefit from Pascal shooting Fantastic Four around the same time, as they can coordinate better with Marvel Studios to have him off set for a couple of days to record his lines via Zoom).



The bottom line is this. It's a great time to be Pedro Pascal, but not a great time to be on his team figuring out the schedules of two massive productions like The Last of Us and Fantastic Four, which, by the way, may actually happen on different continents. So it's not like he'll be able to split his week in half. And finally, Pedro, please, take a good vacation once all of this is over.



Pedro Pascal and Jon Favreau attend 'The Forge' experience inspired by the Star Wars series The Mandalorian, on February 22, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by StillMoving.net for Disney)



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<h2>Dear Lucasfilm,</h2>


I don't really ask for much, other than to be entertained by great stories (I'm aware that it's an ask as simple as it is challenging), but please, bear with me for a second here. Just give me this one. Please, put Ke Huy Quan in Star Wars.



The Oscar-winning actor recently revealed to Collider that, after joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe, one of the big things that is still on his bucket list is joining the Star Wars galaxy. Said Quan:

I understand that the actor now carries his own aura and that it may be easy for us to be pulled out of the movie/show for having such a recognizable face. Star Wars doesn't really do the 'recognizable face' thing, because they are more interested in selling you on the illusion. But there are obvious exceptions, and why not let him take this one? It's rare that we find someone with this level of talent, excitement to join the franchise, and also just the child-like sense of wonder that is as needed off-screen as it is required on-screen. It was his infectious personality and charisma that made him win the Oscar last year, but even if we put that aside, the performance was that good.



Harrison Ford presents the Best Picture Oscar to Everything Everywhere All At Once and welcomes an excited Ke Huy Quan on stage.



Ke Huy Quan was recently seen in the second season of Loki, where he played a key supporting role that made it all the more enjoyable. But he's also someone that needs to be smartly cast. I don't quite see him as a seasoned Jedi Knight in a possible second season of The Acolyte, for instance, nor do I see him as a buffoon in a comic-relief role in the New Jedi Order-era film. But Lucasfilm has been quite smart in their casting so far -- case in point: Ahsoka and its ensemble, which was so above the story they had to work with.



He's an actor capable of putting a smile on my face every time I see him, be it on screen or just on a press junket. He's the personification of what Hollywood aspires to be, so I just want him to succeed and cross off all of those elements on his bucket list. If Brendan Fraser can get a role in Killers of the Flower Moon, why can't Ke Huy Quan star in Spielberg's next feature? The two of them have a long history together, that expands well beyond Temple of Doom. And that's also where Kathy Kennedy comes in.



Kevin Feige had worked with Ke Huy Quan on the very first X-Men movie. The actor was then a stunt choreographer and Feige, an associate producer. The two of them have come a long way, and the weekend after Everything Everywhere All At Once opened, Feige hopped on a call with the actor to try to get him to star as OB in Loki season 2, anticipating his agent's phone would soon ring with plenty of offers from the studios.



But Kennedy and Quan also share a similar, 'come a long way' story, with the actor being a child back in the second Indiana Jones film, where Kennedy was an associate producer; later, Kennedy exec-produced The Goonies, which Quan also starred in. There were already rumblings of Short Round getting his own venture on Disney Plus back when Lucasfilm was conceiving ideas to expand the Indiana Jones mythology on streaming. But Star Wars just seems like the natural fit.







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<h2>Jocasta Nu's Reading List</h2>

• <a style='color: #f7e028;' href='https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2023/11/roger-kastel-poster-artist-for-empire-strikes-back-jaws-and-more-has-passed-away.html' rel='noopener']SWNN[/url]: Sydney honors Roger Kastel, who drew arguably the best Star Wars poster of all time in The Empire Strikes Back, and who passed away this week. May he rest in peace.
• <a style='color: #f7e028;' href='https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2023/11/new-the-high-republic-concept-art-highlights-phase-3-villains.html' rel='noopener']SWNN[/url]: In happier news, Nate recaps the latest concept art from The High Republic Phase III.
• <a style='color: #f7e028;' href='https://gamerant.com/kotor-remake-star-wars-jedi-survivor-lightsaber-bleed-lore/' rel='noopener']Game Rant[/url]: Should the KOTOR remake move forward, here's one thing they should focus on more, according to Joseph Andress.
• Screen Rant: Lewis Glazebrook argues that the season finale of Ahsoka finally laid out the purpose of the New Republic era in Star Wars. It's the exploration of what the balance of the Force truly means.

What did you think of the latest edition of “This Week, In a Galaxy Far, Far Away”? Let me know your comments, suggestions, and complaints in the comment section. You can also send them to us directly via our Contact page or by emailing us at starwarsnewsnet@gmail.com.



Have a great week!





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