The Mandalorian spoilers follow.
It's not every day you talk to a Disney princess. Or a Marvel superhero. Or even a medical doctor, come to think of it. But thanks to Mulan, Agents of SHIELD, and ER, Ming-Na Wen is all of those things to so many people. And just recently, Wen added yet another enviable role to her resume, that of The Mandalorian bounty hunter, Fennec Shand.
For some, this might just seem like the latest dream part in a career that's full of them, but Star Wars holds a very special place in Wen's heart. Since connecting to this saga at a young age, the Disney icon tells us that Star Wars "never faded in my life. In fact," she adds, "I still pray to God, Buddha, and The Force every time I get on a plane."
Digital Spy hopped on a starship of our own and caught up with Ming-Na Wen to discuss Fennec Shand's origin story on The Bad Batch and what's next for her in The Book of Boba Fett. Along the way, we also geeked out over Mark Hamill and Fennec's wardrobe.
Has it been challenging to go back and play a younger version of Fennec Shand on The Bad Batch?
At that point, we had only shot one or two episodes of Fennec, because she "dies" in The Mandalorian, right? She got injured – badly. So when Dave Filoni told me the good news, it was so exciting. I love animation, and having the chance to figure out who this character was.
We sat together, along with the writers of The Bad Batch, and just really tried to figure out what Fennec's energy was at that time; what her motives were, and who she was. And hopefully, through the series, you’ll get little glimpses of her origin story, of how she became a bounty hunter.
Is Fennec's origin story in The Bad Batch going to impact her character in future shows like The Book of Boba Fett?
Yes, and it’s kind of crazy. I feel like I have a novel, and I’m just flipping it back and forth to figure out the two timelines. It’s exciting – any time you get more titbits of a character it really just fuels her actions, and justifies who she is. So I’m looking forward to all that.
Also, I’d like to look in Fennec's closet, and see if she has other outfits. Does she sleep in this outfit? [laughs]
It’s a great outfit, but she could definitely mix things up more!
It is! Oh my goodness, I was so thrilled when I first saw it. It was everything. It helped create Fennec for me so much. As a Star Wars fan, that was the ultimate. It’s tricky. The fans have very high expectations of characters. So I was so thankful and happy. I love the Star Wars fandom.
Do you know if Dave always planned to bring Fennec back after her "death" in The Mandalorian?
I think it evolved, you know? We just hit it off, and we just liked working together. He was directing that episode, 'The Gunslinger', when we found out that we grew up in the same neighbourhood. It was so crazy. Someone was wearing yellow and black, and he was like, "Oh, those are the Penguin colours."
I was like, "Oh, are you a Penguins fan? I love the Steelers because I’m from Pittsburgh."
He’s like, "I’m from Pittsburgh."
And then we both found out that we went to Mount Lebanon, which is this little suburban town, and we went to the same high school.
If that added a little more incentive for him to keep me around, I’ll take it. I’m so glad that person wore yellow and black, because otherwise I don’t think we ever would have found out.
Serendipity, right?
Yeah, because no one ever talks about their high-school days, right? [laughs]
Because of that, you got to be a part of some amazing storylines in season two, including Luke Skywalker's return in the finale. I read somewhere that meeting Mark Hamill meant a great deal to you. Would you mind telling me more about how he's inspired you?
As a kid, I grew up in a very white suburban neighbourhood. I was one of maybe two or three Asians there. I always felt like an outsider and didn’t fit in.
Star Wars, when it came along… I connected so much with Luke Skywalker, especially that double sunset binary scene – when he’s looking out at the sunset, wondering what he’s going to do with his life; if he’s going to be able to follow his dreams. So that has stayed with me forever, that image.
To be in a scene where Luke Skywalker has one of the most— I mean, it made fans lose their minds. It was so, so good. Part of me is still reeling about it. It doesn’t feel like it’s my life, in a way, because I’m living my fantasy, to be in a scene with Mark, with Luke Skywalker. It’s just beyond belief.
I always say to everybody: anything can happen. If you dream it, dream it big, and just believe in making it come true.
I love Mark Hamill. Every time he tweets me, I get so excited still [laughs].
It must be amazing now to see the franchise you've always loved become more diverse. In the last few years, we've seen a lot more Asian representation in Star Wars with you and others helping to pave the way. Teenage you would be so impressed by what you've accomplished!
[laughs] Probably. I think it’s wonderful. I think it’s so necessary. We have all these aliens— we have blue people, we have green people. So having actual representation of Asians in this franchise is really, really important. I’m happy that I got this incredible gift.
When did you find out that you were going to play such a pivotal role in the Boba Fett spinoff?
We’re so secretive about everything, right? We don’t call the shows, the shows. The contracts are always under different names. The show is under different names.
When I was told I was going to become a series regular, I just automatically assumed it was for The Mandalorian season three. And then when the scripts came out, it said 301, 302, 303, 304. So I just assumed I was signing on— because it doesn’t say The Mandalorian on my contracts.
So for two weeks, while I was working with Tem [Temuera Morrison] and Robert [Rodriguez], I had no idea that I was actually shooting the spinoff [laughs].
When the crew and the cast found out, they were dying. It was so crazy. So, yeah, it was wonderful to finally discover that I was shooting The Book of Boba Fett [laughs]. They call it The Mandalorian 2.5, in a way. So I wasn’t all wrong [laughs].
Are you going to appear in The Mandalorian's third season at all or will the spinoff be kept separate?
I don’t know. You’ll probably find out before I do. You guys have your feelers out on everything. I mean, come on, I didn’t even know I was shooting The Book of Boba Fett, so you’re asking the wrong person [laughs].
Have you finished filming now on Boba Fett?
Yes, we have wrapped. And it was tough. We were one of the first shows to come back after they lifted some of the COVID restrictions. We were one of the first ones that was testing the waters of how to do it.
I commend our crew. They were such troopers. It was tough on all of us because of the masks and the shields. But we did it, and we never shut down. We followed the rules, and made it work, yeah.
Do you think that impacted the story in any way? Perhaps there were less characters?
No, we didn’t have to travel out a lot, you know? We were able to stay in-house, and be safe, and just work with the people that were tested all the time. We didn’t have to venture out very much into any locations.
I’m always amazed. Every time I step into a new set, I get so geeked out. I just squeal. I have nerdgasms. And then Tem, who is much cooler than me [laughs], he’s always just like, "OK, Ming, let’s get to work."
Because I feel like running around and touching everything and asking questions about toys [laughs]. And he just needs to focus me a little bit.
Is there anything you can tease about Fennec and her story in the new series?
That’s a really tough question! Let me see. I think one thing I can give away is that — I think Fennec was really, really surprised when she got shot by Toro.
She was very confident at that point about what she was capable of doing as far as reading people, and manipulating people. So that was very unexpected, because she does follow the code. There is an honour system to her, and that was sort of her downfall in a way. I think it made her feel more vulnerable for the first time. It made her feel like, "I’m not invincible."
And, you know, she’s grateful to Boba, for showing up. Thank goodness.
So are we!
The Bad Batch is now streaming on Disney+, with new episodes every Friday. The Mandalorian seasons 1 and 2 are also available to watch on the same platform.
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