The Mandalorian Director Bryce Dallas Howard on Bringing The Clone Wars Heroes to Live-Action

After directing a fairly standalone episode of Star Wars: The Mandalorian in the show’s first season, Bryce Dallas Howard was given the chance to play in a much bigger sandbox in Season 2. “The Heiress” was the third episode of the second season, and it will be remembered as one of the most pivotal character introductions in the live-action Star Wars universe. The episode featured Katee Sackhoff as Bo-Katan Kryze, a character that she has voiced for the better part of a decade in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels.

The arrival of Sackhoff’s Bo-Katan officially marked the merger of the animated and live-action Star Wars worlds, which fans have been waiting to see for some time. Digital Spy recently caught up with Howard and asked her about the importance her episode carried, and whether or not she felt the pressure of having to get Bo-Katan’s debut right. Fortunately, she had the people that know Bo-Katan best working closely with her.

“I think I would have had it not been for Katee Sackhoff playing Bo-Katan, or if Dave Filoni wasn’t there,” Howard explained. “But because Dave Filoni was there, and Katee had played Bo for a decade – for me, it was basically about ensuring Katee’s vision and Filoni’s vision, along with Jon Favreau’s vision… how can I facilitate that?”

“That was my primary focus, rather than being like, ‘I have a perspective on The Clone Wars, and here’s that perspective.’ There are folks who have spent more time on this and have inhabited these characters in this world,” she continued. “So that was the fun of it for me. It was about getting all the experts in the room together, and being like, ‘I think this is the story you’re telling. Does that sound right?’ And they’re like, ‘Yeah.’ That’s more my role.”

There will surely be more Bo-Katan Kryze in the third season of The Mandalorian, and it would be safe to assume that we will see more of Howard behind the camera as well. As one of only three directors to take on an episode in both seasons, it would be surprising not to see her return at some point.

What did you think of The Mandalorian Season 2? Let us know in the comments!