Latest news with #Obi-WanKenobi
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
This ‘Star Wars' Day, check out a moon that looks like iconic space station - and could harbor life
'That's no moon. It's a space station.' So were the words uttered by Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi when he gazed upon the doomsday weapon, the Death Star, in 1977's 'Star Wars,' later subtitled 'Episode IV: A New Hope.' The spherical 'technological terror,' as Darth Vader called it, is a gray, tiled defense system with trenches and a massive dish with a laser capable of destroying a planet. Although the Death Star appeared a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, it resembles something seen in nature — within the solar system. First discovered by astronomer William Herschel in 1789, Mimas is one of the many moons orbiting Saturn, according to NASA. It was not until 1980, when the spacecrafts Voyager I and II, and the craft Cassini, all took images of Saturn's smallest, innermost moon. Besides their lack of color and textured appearances, there's a massive crater on Mimas that makes the space object resemble the Death Star. The Herschel Crater is 80 miles across, caused by an impact that could have broken Mimas apart, NASA stated. Mimas can be seen from Earth using a powerful telescope. While Mimas and the Death Star resemble each other, there's one big difference. The moon is 400 kilometers, or 250 miles, in diameter, according to EarthSky. The Galactic Empire's superweapon is much smaller at 160 kilometers, or 100 miles, in diameter, according to the fan website Wookieepedia. Recent studies of the moon also present a dichotomy with its fictional 'twin.' While the Death Star was a harbinger of destruction, Mimas could harbor life, BBC Sky at Night reported in 2024. A subsurface ocean may have formed in the last 25 million years. 'This is possibly the youngest place in the solar system that could be habitable,' French astronomer Valéry Lainey, whose team discovered the moon's ocean in February 2024, told the BBC magazine. Pieces of Halley's Comet could leave glowing trails across the night sky Look up: This planet is about to pass through cosmic beehive in unique sky event Halley's Comet debris soon to leave glowing streaks in the sky It's one of the biggest moons of the year — so why can't you tell? Watch unique sky event from your backyard as planet passes through a cosmic beehive Read the original article on MassLive.
Buzz Feed
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Simone Kessell Revealed If She Would Return To "Yellowjackets" For Season 4, And Her Answer Surprised Me
Warning: Massive Yellowjackets spoilers ahead! Born in Aotearoa (New Zealand), Simone Kessell is taking the US by storm. You probably recognize her from the hit show Yellowjackets, where she brought adult Lottie to life, but that's just one on a long list of credits, including Obi-Wan Kenobi, Terra Nova, and Our Flag Means Death. She's also starring in the upcoming Apple TV+ thriller drama show, The Last Frontier, and has other projects on the horizon that I'm so excited about! For BuzzFeed's Voices of the Pacific series, I sat down with Simone to chat about all things Yellowjackets, her favorite aspect of Māori culture, and more. You portrayed adult Lottie Matthews in the hit show Yellowjackets, bringing so much charm and intrigue to the role. I was devastated when your character died in Season 3! She's such a fan favorite. What was your reaction when you first read the script? Simone Kessell: I'd already known. I'd spoken with the showrunners prior to filming that season. I was working on another show at the time, and they were calling, and they said, "Look, we've worked out the arc for Lottie this season." And unfortunately, this was going to happen. Of course, I was disappointed because I think when you create a character like Lottie, she's got so many layers, and I put so much time and love into her. I was really looking forward to seeing where that character could go. But I think it's the kind of show where lead characters die; another main character, Van, died. It's been a blessing to work on it, and it's been a blessing to get to play that character. So, it's only a privilege, and I'm incredibly grateful for that. BuzzFeed: Did you take anything from set after filming wrapped? I took a few things. I was very drawn to her jewelry. It was part of my mask and the character of Lottie. So, a wonderful costume designer gave me a few pieces. In Season 2, I was always surrounded by crystals when she was at her community, her compound, and I would often bring home a few crystals. Do you feel like you've said goodbye to Lottie, or would you be willing to return in Season 4 if they asked you to appear in flashbacks or dream sequences? To be honest, I feel that maybe my time with Lottie is done, which is heartbreaking but also invigorating because that's what we do as actors. We move on; we get to create more characters. She's definitely in my heart, and I know I can tap into that sensitivity, especially around mental health and status and things like that. No, she'll always be a part of me. I loved the scenes where Lottie stayed at Shauna's house. You and Melanie Lynskey had such great chemistry together, and she's another Kiwi actor! Do you have any favorite behind-the-scenes memories with her? I knew Melanie going into the season, and she was actually, I think, the reason why I got to play in the world of Yellowjackets because Melanie told the showrunners about me. I'm eternally grateful for that, and through the last couple of years, we've just become incredibly close. There have been many electric moments between us on set in character as Shauna and Lottie, which plays back so nicely into the past storyline as well. I just love her very, very much, and I've got to say, it was a highlight getting to work with her, watching her craft. I think her work this season is sublime. She's so nuanced and honest and heartbreaking, and Melanie is so vastly different from that character. Seeing and knowing Melanie, and then seeing the work that she does as Shauna — it's very, very special to be around. Often after work, she'd be like, [whispering] "Should we go for a Chardonnay?" And I'd go, "Let's go for a Chardonnay, babe." [Laughs] We already had Courtney Eaton as young Lottie in Season 1, and she's Māori, so it was absolutely perfect when they cast you as the adult version in Season 2. Can you share how that came about? Did they intentionally honor Courtney's heritage? They did. She was raised in Australia and wasn't raised in Aotearoa. So, she was a bit distant from that, from her culture back home. But in 2025 especially, you have to really acknowledge people's ethnicities and diversity and background, and they really did. The casting on Yellowjackets is perfect because all of the younger and older characters are sort of beautifully crafted together. Courtney, my goodness, she's stunning on and off screen. She is one of those women you're just drawn to. She's so humble and unique in who she is. When I first met her, I was a bit concerned if I could pull that off, because she has such a stillness in her, especially in her work as young Lottie. But I think we got there, and she does this lovely thing with her eyes, so I tried to incorporate that into adult Lottie and a bit in the physicality. But yes, it was very important for them to make sure they cast in ethnicities, and they did that really well. What was it like building off a character Courtney created? Did you two work together to create Lottie in Seasons 2 and 3? We did, and we didn't. She's actually left-handed. We were like, "Okay, let's make Lottie right-handed." And a couple of times, she forgot [laughs] but we did. She's about this much taller than me, so I made sure all my shoes would always have a sort of platform in them. I'm 5'8, she's easily 5'10, 5'11, so I always wanted that height, especially with the other women. But then when you think about 25 years later — I don't know what you were like 25 years ago or 30 years ago, but I know I was vastly different. And so, we get to play in that world a little bit. There were big boots to fill, I have to say, playing her older version because she crafted that character so beautifully. Have you ever faced challenges in your career as a Pacific Islander? If so, how did you overcome them? Growing up in New Zealand, it was always the supporting or the smaller roles for Māori and Pacific Island characters. They were often also characters that were the single mother, the poor demographic. For so long, you are typecast in that, and still, I don't understand why — especially back in New Zealand — if they're a lawyer or a doctor or a wealthy family woman, that they can't be Māori or Pacific Island. That needs to change. The number of times I've passed on roles because she's the single mom in a housing community and a housing commission flat; it's got to change. It shouldn't be: "Oh, well, no, she's Māori, so she can't play that role." It should be: "She's a woman in that age group; let's see what she brings to the table." That's what I'm really proactive about bringing because it's a melting pot right now, and it's 2025, and I want to see more of that. So, I encourage that, I support that, and I don't take those roles that are typecast anymore. I don't do that anymore, and that's my way of standing up for that. I don't know if you remember this, but you actually tweeted a screenshot from a BuzzFeed post I wrote in 2023 celebrating the casting. You said, 'More Māori and Pacific Islander wahine on our screens please.' What changes would you like to see in the industry to make this happen? More stories and writing for especially Māori, Pacific Island women. Rather than being the supporting role, I would like to see more lead female characters. I am so encouraged and so inspired when I see beautiful, beautiful work coming from our Māori and Pacific Island wahine [women] in particular, because I know firsthand how hard it is to get in front of those people. I know firsthand how hard it is to go into an audition room and blow people out of the water and then get cast. I know how hard it is being a Māori woman to be seen and heard, and I would like to see more of that, because we have an abundance of talent and beauty. Even looking at you. You're so beautiful. BuzzFeed: [smiling] You really are, and we need to see that and to celebrate it, just to be exposed to it. Also, I was wanting to set up something of giving back to Māori Pacific Island communities. Australia does it really well. They have the Heath Ledger scholarship, where they support Australian actors, and they send in their reels, and it narrows them down, and they get $10,000 and a flight to Los Angeles and introduced to all the top agents in Hollywood. I want to incorporate that for our Māori, Pacific Island actors, artists, creatives, and so maybe we can do this together. Unfortunately, I don't live in New Zealand right now. I'm in Sydney, Australia, but that is my dream to do. Because there's such an abundance of talent, from Rachel House through to Cliff Curtis to obviously Taika [Waititi] and all our beautiful Māori, Pacific Islander actors and Temuera [Morrison] and Luciane [Buchanan] and everybody. So with us mob, we can embrace it and create something to hone the next generation, to support, and to give. That way, we will see more wahine, more beautiful Pacific Island and Māori actresses on our screens. You portrayed Queen Breha in the Disney+ series, Obi-Wan Kenobi. What was it like stepping into the Star Wars universe? Stepping into the Star Wars universe was so exciting. It was on the heels of COVID, and I got to fly to Los Angeles, Manhattan Beach, where we filmed it. It was so wonderful. I think of myself as a character actress. Again, there we are, breaking the mold, right? It didn't matter that I was Māori. They saw me for my work, and I had five auditions, so when I was finally given the role, it was such a celebration. I was like, "Oh, how am I going to do it?" And then, it was one of the highlights of my long career so far because stepping into that world, I wasn't a big Star Wars fan. I didn't know. I had to do my homework, and the experience was one of the best. Ewan McGregor was such a generous, wonderful actor to everybody on set. I just had such an amazing time. That was such a treat as an actress. And she's so beautiful. This character, Queen Breha Organa. She was so regal and effortless. I channeled a bit of Michelle Obama. I brought in all these beautiful women that I look up to, and I got to play in that world that was very special. BuzzFeed: I love that Michelle was your inspo. I can totally see the vision. She is all class, and that's what I wanted to play without judgment. Just class and fun. She's got a bit of a spunk to her, so I love that. For Pacific Islanders, there are so many aspects of our cultures that we hold close to our hearts, from our foods to our dances to our tattoos. What's your favorite part of your culture? I'll cry if I think about it. See, I'm getting teary. When you're honored with the haka, and when it's the ultimate respect to honor somebody or something with a waiata [song] and a haka, from welcoming them onto your marae [communal meeting grounds], from sports to somebody's hongi at their funeral, or wedding, celebration. In the Māori culture [visibly tears up] see, look, I cry every time I think about the haka. It's so incredible, and it's so powerful, and it's so uplifting. So, I guess it is waiata, song, cultural dance. BuzzFeed: Sometimes, the right video will come up, a funeral or a wedding, whatever the situation is, and there's just so much emotion in the haka. I'm Samoan, but I feel like for all Pacific Islander people, you can feel the mana [power]. Exactly, yes. It is the mana, the respect, the coming together as one regardless. And it's incredibly powerful. Do you have a favorite Māori food? Well [laughs] when I go home, my whanau or my family say that I'm hopeless because I don't eat meat. So, a boil up, which is probably incredibly good for you because it is all the bones and the meat and the watercress, but it's not a food I eat. I do like fry bread, though. With lots of butter, fantastic. For your next role, you're starring in an Apple TV+ show called The Last Frontier. While very different than Yellowjackets, a plane clash is also central to this story as it frees dozens of prisoners, creating issues for the local US marshall and his wife, Sarah, who you portray. What can you tell us about your character and storyline? We filmed it in Montreal, which doubles for Alaska. It's a lot of snow, a lot of cold, a lot of jackets. It was freezing, minus 10 or 15. I play a nurse and a mother, a wife in this community, when the plane goes down. Think John Grisham, think a big action thriller. My husband, played by Jason Clark. He plays the local marshall, and he has to deal with the fallout from this plane going down in the middle of nowhere, which is filled with the worst convicts, the worst bad guys you can imagine. After Yellowjackets, it's yet another role so vastly different. And it's action, and it's thriller, and it's drama. I'm really looking forward to that. The team behind it are so good, and I'm really excited to be a part of the Apple network as well. I think the show is going to be one that just comes at you. It's very different for me, the character I'm playing as well. I can't wait to share it with everybody. If you could work with any Pacific Islander, who would it be? I've been very fortunate to work with a lot of Māori and Pacific Islander actors for Aotearoa. Right now, I'm working with Rachel House on something. Rachel and I and a couple of others are trying to develop a miniseries with women, think Bad Sisters. So, that's exciting. Some fans might not know this, but you won gold in the women's singles and silver in the women's doubles at the Australian Pickleball Championships! What do you love most about the sport? This weekend, I just played another PPA tournament, and I'm the captain of a major pickleball league team as well. It's just happened in the last year. I love exercise sports. I was a very good tennis player, so playing pickleball came quite easily, and I sort of got very good very quickly. I dedicate a lot of time to it. I think the reason it speaks to me is because I can turn off from this industry. I can turn off Lottie. Playing Lottie really took an emotional toll on me because I gave so much to her, and she was so broken to me. I needed something other than just exercise, like going to the gym. So, pickleball came up, and I started playing, and now I play most days. In fact, after our interview, I'm going to play pickleball! But it's a sport where you're on a court. You can be playing for four or five hours, and you're just thinking of strategies, stroke, where I'm playing, who I'm playing. It's a wonderful way to switch between acting and having a sport that I can get better at as I get older, too. I want to not just work out; I want to learn. The level I play at is very fast, and it's highly strategic. These competitors are incredible athletes, so I'm really pushing myself, and then I get to be an actress. My life is full and wonderful. It's so great. It's such a pleasure playing. BuzzFeed: I love your attitude about continually learning. If we don't, we become stagnant. For me, I travel so much, and I work so much that I have to do something that fills my cup. But also, I'm learning [something] that I can get better at. And let's be honest, I'm very competitive. You can't win at yoga. What advice do you have for young Pacific Islander creatives? If you get nervous — I see a lot of that in young creatives — know that everybody gets nervous. Everyone gets anxious and holds back. It's really, really hard, but when you rise to it and you get there, the payoff is everything. It's not about working as an actress in our industry for the fame. We have to take that out. We have to do it because it fills us up, and it's all we think about, and it's all we want to do. And if that's what speaks to you, then keep going. I am the perfect example. I have been acting for such a long time, and it's only in the last maybe five years that I've continuously worked back-to-back. That's just being tenacious; that's just believing and loving what I do. I always say to myself, "As soon as you stop loving it, as soon as you start not feeling good in it, then give it up." And I don't ever want to give it up. It still makes me so happy. They're the big questions you have to ask yourself. The answer is that it still fills my cup. It still gives me absolute pleasure in life. Then go for it. Your turn is coming. The more you put it out, the more you get back. Just keep on going. You miss one audition. It's not personal. Go for the next, go for the next, go for the next. One year, I think I auditioned 33 times. I didn't get one job, and here we are! You just have to be tenacious and believe in yourself and do the work. And finally, what does being Pacific Islander mean to you? Being Pacific Islander means I have a uniqueness that I'm immensely proud of. Being Pacific Islander means that I come from a community of love and celebration. Being Pacific Islander means that I have whānau [family] all around me, and my ancestors walk beside me.
New York Post
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
‘Andor' creator reveals why they recast major ‘Star Wars' character in Season 2
There's a new Senator Bail Organa in the galaxy. The role of Princess Leia's adoptive father was recast in the second season of the hit 'Star Wars' series 'Andor.' Benjamin Bratt officially stepped into the role in place of Jimmy Smits in the sixth episode that premiered on Disney+ Tuesday. 9 Jimmy Smits as Senator Bail Organa in 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' (2016). ©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection 9 Benjamin Bratt as Senator Bail Organa in 'Andor' Season 2. Disney Creator Tony Gilroy told Entertainment Weekly that they failed to get Smits, 69, to return as Bail. 'We couldn't work it out,' said Gilroy, 68. 'The scheduling didn't work out. We really tried hard, but he wasn't available and couldn't make it.' 9 Tony Gilroy poses for a portrait to promote 'Andor' on April 15 in Los Angeles. Rebecca Cabage/Invision/AP 'Bringing back legacy characters is really complicated,' the filmmaker continued. 'It's very expensive. It's very, who's working when. A lot of effort went into it, but we just couldn't work it out scheduling wise.' Gilroy added to ScreenRant, 'It's really hard to bring legacy characters back for a whole variety of reasons. Money and scheduling and I mean, he [Smits] just wasn't available. It didn't work out. He was doing his other show and we were under the gun and they couldn't work it out. They just couldn't work it out. Believe me, we really tried, but it couldn't happen.' 9 Jimmy Smits as Bail Organa in 'Star Wars: Attack of the Clones' (2002). Smits was busy shooting his CBS show 'East New York' during the filming of 'Andor' Season 2. The actor made his debut in the 'Star Wars' franchise in 'Episode II: Attack of the Clones' (2002). He played Bail again in 'Episode III: Revenge of the Sith' (2005), 'Rogue One' (2016) and the Disney+ miniseries 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' (2022). Bail was first referenced in 'Episode IV: A New Hope' (1977), in which he's killed when the Death Star blows up his home planet Alderaan. 9 Jimmy Smits in 'Obi-Wan Kenobi.' ©Disney+/Courtesy Everett Collection 9 Yoda, Ewan McGregor, Jimmy Smits in 'Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith' (2005). ©20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection Gilroy told EW that LucasFilm president Kathleen Kennedy came up with the idea to cast Bratt, 61, as the senator. 'It was just a brilliant idea. He's a wonderful human being and really eager and beloved on set and really happy about what he does,' said Gilroy. 9 Benjamin Bratt at a screening of 'Millers in Marriage' in NYC on Feb. 20. Getty Images The Oscar-nominated director also shared that Bratt's brief appearance in Episode 6 of 'Andor' Season 2 was 'so people will get the conversation out of the way until the next week when he really starts to work.' 'It's one of those situations where I want to do something simple,' Gilroy continued. 'We don't do many things that are unnecessary, but it's like, 'Let's get him in here now so people can discuss it for a week and get it out of their system and then he can come back to really work.' I didn't want the guy's work to be confused with his introduction.' 9 Diego Luna in 'Andor' Season 2. Des Willie /Lucasfilm Ltd. 9 Genevieve O'Reilly as Mon Mothma, Ben Miles as Tay Kolma in 'Andor' Season 2. AP 'Andor' stars Diego Luna as Cassian Andor in his journey from thief to rebel spy. The series is set several years before the events of 'Rogue One,' which explains how the Rebellion steal the plans to the Death Star which they destroy in 'A New Hope.' New episodes of 'Andor' Season 2 come out Tuesdays at 9 p.m. EST on Disney+.
Daily Mail
23-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Ewan McGregor's girl forced to cover up tattoos for new role in Prime Video series
Esther McGregor has covered up her tattoos for her starring role in a new Prime Video series We Were Liars. A promo shot for the drama shows the daughter of Star Wars hero Ewan McGregor without the distinctive ink works that run down her left arm. The 23-year-old actress and model plays the role of Mirren as a group of young adults has their friendship tested with one trying to piece together the events leading to her near-death experience. Her father told The Late Late Show With James Corden in 2022 what it was like to work with her after she appeared alongside him in the Disney+ miniseries, Obi-Wan Kenobi. He said: 'I'm sure everybody thinks she got the job because of me, but really she didn't. She auditioned for the role. 'You don't really know with your kids until that moment when I was acting with her and it felt really normal and natural.' Based on E. Lockhart's novel, all episodes of We Were Liars will premier on June 18 on Prime Video.
Express Tribune
21-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Hayden Christensen hints at more Darth Vader stories after Ahsoka season 2 return
Hayden Christensen has confirmed that Anakin Skywalker will return in Season 2 of Ahsoka, marking another appearance in the Disney+ live-action series. The actor revealed the news during a panel at Star Wars Celebration Japan, following his cameo in Season 1, where Anakin appeared as a Force ghost within the World Between Worlds to guide his former apprentice, Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson). 'I can't say much, but Anakin will be back for season 2,' Christensen told attendees, hinting at further exploration of the Jedi-turned-Sith's legacy. Beyond his appearance in Ahsoka, Christensen previously reprised the role of Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi, the six-episode series that reunited him with Ewan McGregor and explored the fallout between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. That post-Episode III timeline has been explored in projects like Star Wars Rebels and Marvel's Darth Vader comics by Charles Soule. The 2017 'Vader: Year One' run picked up immediately after Anakin's transformation, following his early days as the Emperor's enforcer and revealing the origins of his red lightsaber and his fortress on Mustafar. Reflecting on the character's arc, Christensen told 'There's a lot that we could still explore with Vader. From where we left off after Episode III, and everything that he has to reconcile after being trapped in this new version of himself, there's just a lot of very rich stories that we could still tell.' He added, 'I love the character, and I'd love to get to continue with it. And so hopefully we'll get to do more of it.' With Christensen eager to return and untold stories still waiting, Darth Vader's journey in the Star Wars universe may be far from over.
