One Star Wars movie theory just received a major boost. Lucasfilm is currently plotting the saga’s return to theaters for the first time since 2019, recently unveiling the first trailer for The Mandalorian and Grogu. That film has the task of bringing fans back, and proving there is still an audience willing to go to a galaxy far, far away on the big screen, after several years of being a Disney+ franchise. But the plans stretch beyond that, and it will be followed one year later by Star Wars: Starfighter.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Starring Ryan Gosling and directed by Shawn Levy, the movie will follow the characters played by Gosling and Flynn Gray as they’re chased through the galaxy. Now, a new rumor about Starfighter‘s plot sheds more light on things, as it claims that Gray’s character will be Force-sensitive, which is presumably why he’s being targeted. Not only that, it also states that Amy Adams, who plays his mother, will be a Jedi in the movie. There have already been theories that Adams will play Legends’ Mara Jade in Starfighter and, if she is a Jedi, that suddenly becomes more plausible.
Could Mara Jade Be In Star Wars: Starfighter?
Like a portion of fries or a good margarita, this rumor needs plenty of salt: it’s far from confirmed, and we probably won’t know if it’s true or not for a long time, given Starfighter only recently started filming. But the idea of Gray’s character being Force-sensitive does make some sense, as there’s likely a reason he’s seemingly of high value to the movie’s villains, and so it’s also believable his mother would be too, especially as Star Wars loves powerful bloodlines and familial stories.
Adams obviously has the right look for Mara, and is within the right age frame, too (51). That itself could be important if she is playing a Jedi: if her character is in her mid-to-late 40s or early 50s, she’d be too young to be an Order 66 survivor, but too old to have been a secret survivor of Luke Skywalker’s Jedi Temple. (For reference, Starfighter takes place five years after The Rise of Skywalker; that means the destruction of Luke’s temple was around 12 years ago, and Order 66 was 59 years ago.)
Adams’ character being a secret Force-sensitive who was trained by Palpatine, before eventually turning to the light side, isn’t really out of the question. Of course, some elements are harder to adapt than others: it’d be fairly easy to reveal she had been the Emperor’s Hand, it’s much, much more difficult to include her romance with (and marriage to) Luke, though technically not impossible. It also wouldn’t be too surprising if Starfighter either took the name or certain elements of the character and packaged them into something new.
Should Mara Jade Be In Star Wars: Starfighter?
Much like the scientists in Jurassic Park, there’s a concern that the powers-that-be here will be so preoccupied with whether or not Mara Jade could become canon, they won’t stop to think about whether she should. That’s an altogether different question, and one with an even more complicated answer.
Mara is hugely popular, and rightly so. She had a superb arc in Legends, great stories with Luke, and is one of the franchise’s best female characters. I like Mara, and if you’ve read this far, it probably means you like Mara too, but that doesn’t mean Starfighter is right for her. The issue is that it would inevitably be a watered-down version of the character. There’d be no Luke, and it’d be very hard to fit in much of her backstory with him, the Emperor, and so on. Adams is a phenomenal actress, so there are no issues there, but if Star Wars can’t deliver the full Mara Jade Experience, why bother?
This isn’t just about Mara, though. Star Wars still needs to break away from the Jedi, which Andor was a great example of. It has to be able to diversify its storytelling, and there are so many other character types who don’t use the Force that can be explored. With Starfighter described as a standalone, I’d rather it veer away from the Jedi altogether.
I’m Convinced Star Wars Will Make Mara Jade Canon (Eventually)
Whether Adams is Mara or not, what I am more convinced by is that the character will eventually be made canon in Star Wars. The franchise has continued liberally taking elements from Legends and making them canon in its own way, and given her popularity and the storytelling potential, I just don’t see her being ignored forever. Thrawn was made canon, Darth Revan was too (and I assume will be more in the future), and so Mara would make sense as well, especially with so much time being spent in the post-Return of the Jedi timeline and even, perhaps, a very loose adaptation of Heir to the Empire on the horizon.
The title of Emperor’s Hand already exists in canon, albeit in a different form. Star Wars loves revealing secret Force-sensitives and Jedi, so what’s one more? And Mara would make Dave Filoni’s planned movie that culminates the New Republic/Mandoverse stories feel even bigger. There would also be a lot of problems, so again, I’m not entirely convinced it’s the right call, but I’d just be surprised if Star Wars left all of that untouched.
The Mandalorian and Grogu will be released on May 22nd, 2026, followed by Star Wars: Starfighter on May 28th, 2027.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image via THQ Nordic -
image courtesy of 20th Century Studios -
Image courtesy of 2th Century Studios
