Zachary Quinto wants to do a fourth Star Trek. Daniel Logan said there will be flashback scenes in The Book of Boba Fett. Actor Barry Lowin said that he, Ariel and Leilani Shiu, Chris Bartlett, and Tait Fletcher, who all played characters in Star Wars: The Mandalorian, worked on Boba Fett. Those are three insights from FanX Salt Lake Comic Convention 2021, which ran Thursday through Saturday in Salt Lake City, Utah. Six celebrities also spoke with That Hashtag Show from FanX as many other panels/spotlights occurred there.
The following is a sampling of what happened there.
Quinto Wants to Reprise Spock
Quinto said he would like to do a sequel to Star Trek Beyond, where he plays Spock. (And apparently, a fourth Star Trek in the current series is on its way, with a deal having been made for a director and screenwriters.) Quinto, who also played Heroes antagonist Sylar, said the villain was supposed to die in the first season. However, networks would ask for more content with the same characters even if it’s “anathema to the story,” Quinto said at FanX.
“He should have died much sooner,” Quinto said. “We got into territory that we were breaking our own rules just to keep him around.”
Quinto also said that he would do theater full-time under the right circumstances, but then he wouldn’t be able to do conventions.
Logan: Boba Fett Will Have Flashbacks
And besides saying that there will be flashbacks in Boba Fett, Logan said he knew long before the reveal of Boba in The Mandalorian that it would happen. Logan said he knew even though he didn’t play the character in the show (Logan played Boba in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones) because he is part of the Star Wars “family.”
Logan also dished on other items in a panel with former Boba stunt double Dirk “Dickey” Beer. The actor said that Star Wars creator George Lucas asking for Logan back by name for Star Wars: The Clone Wars was “like God calling you back to heaven.”
Corey Burton voiced Cad Bane in The Clone Wars. Logan said Burton helped him on scripts and some of the lines and delivery when Logan reprised Boba in The Clone Wars “because it’s all about delivery in voice acting.”
Many Mandalorian Actors in Boba Fett
Lowin, on a panel that included six actors from The Mandalorian, said, “I have worked on the first and second seasons of Mando; we are starting the third season soon; in between that, I got to work on The Book of Boba Fett, which I think we all worked on.”
Lowin was a stunt double to Din Djarin (the protagonist of The Mandalorian) and also was a Shoretrooper in the show. Those other actors on the panel were the Shius (Outworld Jawas), Bartlett (Q-9 Zero, The Ferryman, Teacher Droid and more), Fletcher (The Heavy Mandalorian, Paz Visla) and Emily Swallow, who played The Armorer (the leader of a tribe of Mandalorian warriors) in The Mandalorian.
Swallow on Being in The Mandalorian
“It definitely means a lot that there is this female character that people admire and look up to and it has nothing to do with how she looks,” Swallow told That Hashtag Show. “It’s such a relief.” (The Armorer’s face and body are covered by a mask and armor.)
Swallow also spoke about being in The Mandalorian generally.
“It’s ridiculous because I played Star Wars as a kid,” she said. “I grew up with those first three movies and played Ewok adventures as a kid and now I get to play this character that I really look up to and admire … I get giddy.”
Swallow is proud of different work, which includes theater work, that she has done for different reasons. She doesn’t really have a favorite. But when she read the script for The Mandalorian and saw who was involved with it, she “thought it was a beautifully imagined way to tell the story.
“I’m proud of the way it came out and the work that they put into it,” Swallow said. “I’m that that person could connect to The Armorer even though there is so little of her that we get to see.” Swallow also said that working with The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau and executive producer Dave Filoni is “a dream come true.”
“They’re so brilliant but also such great team-builders and so wonderful at supporting everyone that’s working with them, so everyone feels important and I think that that allows everyone to do their best work,” Swallow said. “It’s a really playful environment; it feels safe to try things that might not work, but I think that’s what you have to do in order to make really great discoveries.”
Picard and Guardians Vol. 3 Are Underway
Star Trek and Marvel Cinematic Universe concept artist John Eaves made some announcements for productions on which he is working, though they were first reported within the last couple of weeks. The third season of Star Trek: Picard is underway and Eaves just started with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
And Eaves recently finished work on Spider-Man: No Way Home and She-Hulk. He also said that ViacomCBS is waiting for the Picard series to conclude before releasing a book on the art of the show.
The award-winning artist presented on the art of Picard and designing the hit Disney+ show WandaVision, showing many photographs of drawings he did and props that he put together.
Celebrity Interviews
Jim Cummings
Cummings, who voices Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, said that Curious George is “back in action” (he voices various characters in that show) and Mickey Mouse Funhouse is on (he voices Pete in that show). Cummings also noted that Shark Week, which he narrated, recently ended.
The 68-year-old Cummings said that he remembers Winnie from when he was a kid, when the first productions involving the character were released.
“It’s awesome because I got to grow up and carry on that tradition; it’s pretty great,” Cummings said. “Everybody responds to him – everybody likes him; he’s safe.”
Sam J. Jones
Jones, who played Flash Gordon in the film of the same name, said he believes that three of the five independent films with which he has been involved in the past three years are on Amazon Prime right now. Those include The Silent Natural (he played the father) and Axcellerator (he played a psychotic hitman).
Jones refers to Flash Gordon as “the triple blessing.” The first blessing is getting hired; the second is “what we do if we do it well and/or if the project does good”; and the third is “the longevity,” Jones said.
“I love when the granddad, grandson, grandmother, granddaughter comes to my table,” Jones said. “This is something that’s timeless.”
Shannon Elizabeth
Elizabeth, who has had roles in American Pie, Scary Movie, Jay and Silent Bob and Love Actually, said that her full-time focus right now is her charity, the Shannon Elizabeth Foundation, which does conservation work. Elizabeth is running the charity from South Africa.
Two of her favorite films that she has been in are Jay and Silent Bob and Scary Movie.
“I had more to do than I did in American Pie,” Elizabeth said. “I enjoyed the challenge.”
For Jay and Silent Bob, Elizabeth loved working with director Kevin Smith. For Scary Movie, she enjoyed her death scene.
Jason Liebrecht
Liebrecht, who is a voice actor for many English versions of Japanese anime series and video games, said that the My Villain Academia arc is currently in progress.
Liebrecht also said that his favorite role is “definitely” an anime called Darker Than Black. The actor played a duel role in the show of the Black Reaper and “a mild-mannered Chinese student” named Hei. Liebrecht played two distinct voices and two distinct personalities.
“It’s the closest thing I will ever get to be able to play Batman, in my best estimation,” Liebrecht said.
James ‘Murr’ Murray
Murray, of Impractical Jokers fame, has more than one reason to be excited just a few days after FanX. Not only is he celebrating his one-year wedding anniversary, but his new book, The Stowaway, is being released. Murray said that if you like Silence of the Lambs, you will like The Stowaway.
Also, the author plugged Area 51 Interns, which will be released in March. Murray said he has always wanted to write thrillers.
“I’m a huge sci-fi and horror fan, so when I had the opportunity a few years ago, I started writing,” Murray said. “Now, we have five books out.”
Also, season 10 of Jokers will be out next year, Murray said.
Other Panels & Spotlights
Is Ahsoka Tano the Purest Example of the Jedi?
Eight panelists asked at FanX if Ahsoka Tano of Star Wars is the purest example of the Jedi. One of the panelists was Adrian Ropp, a former storyboard artist at Disney. He said that Filoni, who created Ahsoka, hasn’t killed her as he is waiting for the right story.
“I think he waits for that perfect story,” Ropp said.
Bret Iwan
Iwan, the voice of Mickey Mouse, wasn’t an actor when he was invited to audition for the role. He had a dream – but not to be an actor. He actually wanted to be a Disney animator.
Iwan thought his friends were “punking” him when he got an email inviting him to audition for Mickey.
“Then I read the email and they weren’t,” Iwan said. “It was legit.”
Ashley Eckstein
Eckstein, Iwan’s co-spotlight feature, walked out of a line for an audition for Padme Amidala of Star Wars and called her agent, saying she wasn’t going to audition. (Also, she hadn’t eaten lunch.)
“Ashley, whatever you do, do not leave,” the agent told her, Eckstein said.
It led to Eckstein getting the part of Ahsoka for The Clone Wars. Filoni, a Clone Wars showrunner, stopped Eckstein hardly after she had started to audition for the part of Padme. He told Eckstein to learn an Icelandic accent to audition for Ahsoka.
So then, Eckstein went to a dialogue coach. And when she auditioned for Ahsoka, Eckstein spoke the first line in the accent before Filoni stopped her again and asked her to sound more Icelandic. Eckstein responded that she was doing an Icelandic accent.
“I don’t know what you want,” Eckstein reported then telling Filoni. That got her the part.
Lucasfilm staff had told Eckstein to be herself in the audition. They also wanted somebody who was “snippy” and not “bratty,” Eckstein said. Apparently, Eckstein was merely snippy to Filoni, she said.
“They didn’t know what they wanted for Ahsoka,” Eckstein said. “I was able to bring my own voice and my own personality to Ahsoka.”
‘Superheroes Have Always Been Political’
“Superheroes have always been political, full stop,” historian and Boise State professor Dane Johns said. Superman was “a plea to the United States to get involved in World War II,” he previously said.
Johns demonstrated that politics have informed the origin of superheroes beyond just his Superman example. Johns also talked about Batman, Wonder Woman and others.
‘The Empire Strikes Back’ at 40
Panelists also celebrated “Star Wars: Episode V — The Empire Strikes Back” for the film’s 40th anniversary. (FanX still let the panel occur since COVID-19 derailed the celebration that would have happened last year.)
“It’s the most well-liked ‘Star Wars’ movie and the good guys are losing all the way,” said panelist Ryder Waldron, a co-host of the Idiot’s Array podcast.
Panelist Spencer Brinkerhoff said where you get a “big story” in Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope, you get a “personal story” in The Empire Strikes Back.
Black Widow
Panelists also discussed Black Widow. Panelist Tracy Mangum said that when there is a male director and a strong female lead, the female ends up not doing female things, but that was different in Black Widow with a female director and a female screenwriter.
Mangum also said that even costume design departments for “really good” films will put women in clothes that are leather and tight. He applauded Black Widow for being different.
Alan Ritchson
Ritchson, a Titans actor, shared a story of survival. (Trigger warning.)
Ritchson told a crowd about his near-suicide attempt.
Ritchson had put an extension cord around his neck after his business partner had threatened to sabotage his businesses if he didn’t have sex with her. That’s how Ritchson described how he got into the headspace for his last scene as Hawk in the show.
“I prepared for the role by living it,” Ritchson said.
Ritchson said that “instead of an extension cord,” he now focuses on serving others or “just being kind.”
