Star Wars: Don't Expect To See Mara Jade In Episode IX
Or anytime soon, really.
After wiping out the Expanded Universe when they purchased Lucasfilm, Disney have slowly started adding key elements of the Legends back into Star Wars canon.
The biggest example is animated series Rebels bringing back Grand Admiral Thrawn, but we’ve also seen things like Tag & Bink and Teras Kasi. One character who hasn’t yet been returned, but remains high on fans’ wishlists, is Mara Jade.
The wife of Luke Skywalker who becomes a powerful Jedi in her own right, she became a real fan-favourite after her introduction in Heir of the Empire (the same novel, incidentally, that brought Thrawn to Star Wars too). Now, author of that book and creator of Mara’s character, Timothy Zahn, has spoken about the possibility of her return to canon, telling the podcast Talking Bay 94:
“If there was a generic, or organic, spot for her to fit into a story… I promise I will pitch it to the Lucasfilm story group, and then, it’s their decision whether to allow it or not.”
He added, however, that he would veto any effort to merely give Mara Jade a passing cameo, rather than a proper role in the story.
While there have been rumours of a character going by the name Mara showing up in Episode IX, it’s highly unlikely to be Mara Jade. For starters, you’d think Zahn would know by now if that were the case, but it’s also difficult to see how she’d fit into the movie. Luke is dead and never had a wife, so if/when the character does turn up she’ll have to be VERY different to how she is in the books.
Do you hope to see Mara Jade brought back into canon? Let us know down in the comments.