The surprise appearance of Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker in The Mandalorian stands as one of the most memorable moments in Star Wars lore. Rosario Dawson, known for her role as Ahsoka Tano, shared with us at Star Wars Celebration an incredible behind-the-scenes story about the secrecy surrounding Hamill's cameo. She revealed that she was completely in the dark about his involvement until he unexpectedly walked onto the set of The Book of Boba Fett.
To maintain the confidentiality of this monumental reveal, showrunners Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau cleverly used Jedi Master Plo Koon as a decoy in the scripts. This tactic was employed to throw off potential leaks, and Dawson herself was caught off guard by the script mentioning Plo Koon's arrival. As fans recall, Plo Koon met a tragic end in Revenge of the Sith, so his inclusion in The Book of Boba Fett script was perplexing to Dawson.
"I was like... I don't know... but people disappear and then they come back, so maybe it's possible?" Dawson recounted. The surprise intensified when Mark Hamill appeared on set, humorously dismissing the Plo Koon plotline with, "Plo Koon? That wouldn't even make sense!" Dawson, still processing the script she had read, agreed, "I know it didn't make sense, but I still had to think it made sense because I got the script and everything!"
Filoni and Favreau expressed their regret for not informing Dawson earlier, with Favreau admitting, "That was bad on us!" Filoni added with a chuckle, "We assumed you'd gotten told the right information. We were in it so much."
Favreau highlighted the intense secrecy surrounding two major plot points: Grogu's reveal at the end of the first episode and Luke Skywalker's appearance at the end of season two. "We were biting our nails all the way the whole way through, and we somehow miraculously made it cleanly to both of those because everything else leaked. But, unfortunately, we didn't fill in our partner here," he explained.
Dawson took the oversight in stride, jokingly saying, "I love it, they know I can't be trusted." Her light-hearted response underscores the camaraderie and fun behind the scenes of such a beloved franchise.
Concept art of Plo Koon made to throw off leaks. Image Credit: Disney & Lucasfilm
