Before the slew of Star Wars shows that eventually made their way to Disney+, the original series that started all of the excitement was The Mandalorian. Three seasons later it is still widely regarded as the best thing the Star Wars universe has put out in recent memory. So much so that there is now a movie in the pipeline for the franchise. The show was hugely successful so naturally, a 4K UHD physical release is set to hit store shelves tomorrow, December 3rd. The UHD release will include bonus features, one of which is a featurette honoring the late actor Carl Weathers who played Greef Karga in the series. The news outlet Collider was able to get their hands on the featurette a day early, check it out:
Show creator Jon Favreau and show pilot director Dave Filoni both speak about Weathers, and sing his praises for not only his acting on the this show but his pedigree of acting overall. Filoni mentions that Weathers was the first actor he had ever directed in any project, and recalled his demeanor while on the set, “He had a wonderful way with people. He never talked down, never second guessed me. He always treated me as if I’ve been there, a veteran the whole time.”
Favreau recalls Weathers being a childhood hero of his, and recounts his excitement getting an actor, “he put on a pedestal” to be in the show. “I was like, maybe he’d do a few episode cameo. And then after we were starting to work on it, I rewrote it so he ended up taking a turn for the good. And I don’t think that would have happened had it not been him.” It sounds like Karga was never meant to be in the show longer than a cameo in season 1 but the stars aligned and he became ingrained in it, becoming a featured character.
His character in the show, Greef Karga, was was the leader of the Bounty Hunters Guild that Mando was a part of, and sends the title character on his mission to retrieve Grogu aka Baby Yoda. He begins his character arc as a set in stone villain, but by the end of the first season he redeems himself and joins Mando. He remains on the good side for the remainder of his time on the series and ends up being one of Mando’s greatest allies. Not much else was revealed about the background of his character, but that’s what made him so intriguing.
Weathers passed away earlier this year in February, and his character won’t just be missed by fans but it will very obviously be missed by the creators and crew of the show as well. It’s hard to tell what kind of role Karga would have had in the movie, but his acting opposite Pedro Pascal elevated every scene and every episode he was in. Make sure to check out the full featurette, and if you’re a fan of the Mandalorian and physical media the 4K UHD releases tomorrow so make sure to pick it up. Also make sure to check out tonight’s premier of the next Star Wars entry, Skeleton Crew. The show has the same feel as the Mandalorian and can hopefully make up for some of the confusing choices made in the Star Wars universe over the past year or so. Skeleton Crew premiers tonight at 6pm PST/9pm EST.