Lucasfilm Exec Debunks Reports of Mara Jade Being Canon in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

Of all of the characters in the Star Wars Expanded Universe there are few fans want to be made actual canon more than Mara Jade. The red-haired Emperor’s Hand, smuggler, and eventual Jedi Master and wife of Luke Skywalker has been a fan-favorite since her first appearance in Timothy Zahn’s 1991 book Heir to the Empire but was declared non-canon along with the rest of the Expanded Universe when the novels were rebranded as Star Wars Legends in 2014. Despite this, fans have held out hope she may end canon yet and this weekend it seemed that was the case thanks to a discovery at Disneyland’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge but now, Lucasfilm executive Matt Martin is confirming that the “discovery” is fake.

Over the weekend a post popped upon the Star Wars Reddit featuring a photo reportedly from a bathroom stall at Galaxy’s Edge. The stall featured gold lettering that, when popped into a handy Star Wars language translator reads “Mara Jade Lives”. The post got fans excited. If the phrase reads “Mara Jade Lives” and it’s at Galaxy’s Edge, then that makes Mara Jade canon. Die-hard Star Wars and Mara Jade fans rejoiced. However, as soon as the post started making the rounds, someone shared it with Martin who cast the first major doubt on things.

“I don’t know for sure, but I would be surprised if it was real,” he wrote on Twitter. “It looks like a decal. If Imagineering put that in as ‘graffiti’ I would think it’d look more handwritten. I can confirm that never came across my desk.”

Martin later circled back around on Monday and made it official. The “Mara Jade Lives” at Galaxy’s Edge is fake. The beloved character still remains outside of canon and, as far as fans know at this point, there are no plans to change that.

Realistically, it may actually be a good thing that this Galaxy’s Edge situation turned out to be fake. As Martin noted in replies on his original comment, would fans really want Mara Jade’s introduction into Star Wars canon to be on a decal on a restroom stall? As fans of the character know, Mara Jade is a formidable force and a complex, fascinating character. Just tossing her name on a bathroom door would just be wrong. That said, it’s still disappointing that Mara Jade remains non-canon though there’s always hope that could someday change. After all, some Expanded Universe/Legends characters have made the leap — Grand Admiral Thrawn in particular comes to mind with the character being reintroduced to the franchise as canon in the animated series Star Wars Rebels.

What do you think? Are you disappointed that the “Mara Jade Lives” reference is fake? What character from the Expanded Universe do you most want to see make the leap to Star Wars canon? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.