Star Wars: The Mandalorian Actor Partially Accepted Role to Help Fund a Different Project

The massive following of the Star Wars saga has seen actors be able to fulfill their dreams of joining the galaxy far, far away, as most of the cast of the various installments regularly profess their love for the series. While some of the performers in the series have earned prominent roles, allowing them to fulfill lifelong dreams, other members of the cast have explained that they would accept virtually any role imaginable, for no reason other than to cement themselves as part of the franchise. Werner Herzog, on the other hand, took the role in Star Wars: The Mandalorian as an opportunity to help fund his project Family Romance, LLC.

“I had a very, very vague idea of what Star Wars was all about,” Herzog shared at the Cannes Film Festival, per Vanity Fair, when discussing the difficulties of securing the funds for his new project.

Family Romance, LLC will reportedly be an adaptation of an unfinished script from Herzog, starring Japanese-speaking non-actors. Additionally, the film would shoot in Japan, with Herzog himself not a speaker of the language. The filmmaker noted that he dedicated his first checks he earned from The Mandalorian to the production, though also noted he has taken on a number of projects to secure funds for the endeavor.

“The only thing I have not done so far [to make money for movies],” the filmmaker joked, “is bank robbery.”

While Herzog’s inspiration to take the role might have been about the money, he confessed that, once he learned more about the role, he became more invested in it.

“I asked for the full screenplays, and I looked into the part, and it looked good and interesting,” Herzog confessed.

Not only was money the motivating factor behind his decision to join the project, but Herzog has previously revealed that he has never even seen a Star Wars movie.

“I have to confess I never saw a single one,” Herzog shared with the Associated Press. “I’ve seen some trailers, I’ve seen some excerpts here and there. And I know about the whole franchise and about the toys for the kids, and so… it’s all a new mythology of a time of some sort of heroics, and it has created new mythologies, and you better take them seriously. Yes, they’re out there, and don’t ignore them.”

Star Wars: The Mandalorian debuts on Disney+ on November 12th.

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