It was announced today, via USA Today, that Freddie Prinze, Jr. will be playing the lead in “Star Wars: Rebels.” He’s taking on the part of Kanan, a Jedi who has hidden away during the Dark Times, but continues to fight the Empire. Dave Filoni describes him as a bit of a “cowboy” Jedi.
Freddie Prinze, Jr., is no stranger to the world of science fiction and fantasy, he played Christopher Blair (a role originated by Mark Hamill) in 1999’s “Wing Commander,” and took on the role of Fred in the live action “Scooby Doo” movie.
According to the USA Today piece, the series takes place 14 years after the events of “Revenge of the Sith” and the purge of the Jedi via Order 66. Since Kanan seems so young, it might not be a stretch to think he might have still been a padawan learner at the time of the extinction of the Jedi.
USA Today has an exclusive video and accompanying story that gives us tidbits like this:
Since then, Kanan has been on the down-low, too. He keeps his lightsaber under lock and key and brandishes a blaster instead to avoid the attention of the Empire, especially the Inquisitor (a Sith villain) and his Stormtroopers. But Kanan gets his Force-ful groove back with his crew on the spaceship The Ghost and fights back against the imperial menace.
“He’s been forced to shove a massive part of his life under the bed, so to speak,” Prinze says. “Is he living a lie? At a certain point, the lie kind of becomes the reality. And to suddenly be forced back into your Jedi ways, it’d be a bit of a challenge for him. And pretty awesome, too, when you can see what a Jedi can actually do.”
For my money, this series looks great and I’m happy to welcome Freddie Prinze, Jr., a self professed geek, into the fold as a member of the “Star Wars” family. Lets hope future announcements include some of the talented cast of “The Clone Wars.”
“Star Wars: Rebels” hits the Disney Channel in a one hour movie in the fall and then will hit a half hour format on Disney XD afterward.
As ever, be sure to read Big Shiny Robot! and listen to Full of Sith for the most up-to-date in “Star Wars” news.