'Star Wars: Episode 9' Rumor: Is Disney Going for Its Biggest Non-Canon Resurrection Yet?
"Star Wars: Episode 9" might be making the most jaw-dropping non-canon resurrection yet.
Disney may have dismissed "Star Wars Legends" as irrelevant when it bought the rights to the space opera franchise years ago, but this does not mean elements from it will not be making their way back to canon.
"Star Wars: Episode 9" will apparently be the venue for the entertainment giant to go all out on that.
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While recent "Star Wars" projects brought back elements from the expanded universe including Grand Admiral Thrawn on "Star Wars Rebels," the films are yet to go that crazy in that department.
This might change in "Star Wars: Episode 9" as the folks over at That Hashtag Show are reporting that the film is casting actresses between 40 to 50 years old for a female lead being referred to as Mara.
"Star Wars" fans are under the impression that this character could very well be Mara Jade, who happens to be Luke Skywalker's (Mark Hamill) wife in the non-canon books.
This Mara will be a prominent character in "Star Wars: Episode 9" and is expected to fill the huge void left by Carrie Fisher, who passed away in late 2016.
Her character Leia was supposed to play a huge role in the third film in the sequel trilogy. Since "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" saw Harrison Ford's Han Solo in a prominent role and "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" put Luke front and center, Leia was supposed to get the spotlight in "Star Wars: Episode 9."
Since this is no longer possible, it seems that director J.J. Abrams is still looking to have an older female character to play an important role in the threequel. Whether this will be Mara Jade from the non-canon books or a completely different character remains to be seen though.
Of course, a lot of tweaks would need to be done if Mara Jade is being brought back for the sequel trilogy. Making her debut in the 1991 book "Heir to the Empire," the character was introduced as Emperor Palpatine's assassin, who carried out his bidding that mostly involved the cold-blood murder of anyone who got in his way.
She was Force-sensitive operative who was tasked by Palpatine right before his death to kill Luke. She did not end up doing that and decided to go rogue. She briefly became a smuggler and at some point, got the chance to work with Luke whom she came to respect. She ultimately turned to the light side, married the Jedi master, and they had a son named Ben Skywalker.
Even without relying on the Force, Mara Jade was skilled in a variety of fields thanks to the first-rate training she received as the Emperor's Hand. She was a good pilot and mechanic and was an expert in using the blaster and hand-to-hand combat.
When she did use the Force, she received training from the best of the best, and years later, by Luke himself. She met her demise at the hands of Han and Leia's son, Jacen Solo, who turned to the dark side.
Much of her background will have to be tweaked for her to fit right into the sequel trilogy, but the fact that her fate is directly intertwined with Han and Leia's son makes it easier for her to slide into "Star Wars: Episode 9."
It is important to note that Disney is known for being secretive on all things "Star Wars" and the fact that they would just use the name of a very important character in the history of the franchise suggests this might be a red herring.
This could ultimately backfire, though, as fans seem to be under the impression a version of Mara Jade is officially headed to canon.
For now, nothing is set in stone yet. It is believed that if Mara Jade is featured in "Star Wars: Episode 9," she could serve as a mentor to Rey (Daisy Ridley), if she is still alive, or perhaps appear in a flashback or as a Force ghost along with her husband.
