Lucasfilm has unveiled a first look at the space pirates in the upcoming Star Wars: Skeleton Crew series including Jaleel White, who is famously known as Urkel.
White’s character, Gunter, sports a slightly cyborg-like appearance and is bald. Alongside Gunter is the familiar Vane (Marti Matulis), previously seen causing trouble in The Mandalorian, along with other pirate characters like Brutus (voiced by Frank Tatasciore and played by performance artist Stephan Oyoung), Pax (performance artist: Mike Estes), and Chaelt (Orange is the New Black‘s Dale Soules).
Set after the fall of the second Death Star and before the rise of the First Order, Skeleton Crew explores a galaxy with minimal Imperial presence, allowing pirates to flourish. “The Empire is gone, and so we’re playing with a part of the galaxy that has a resurgence of piracy,” says co-creator Christopher Ford.
In a nod to classic LucasArts games, co-creator Jon Watts draws inspiration from Monkey Island pirates, adding an adventurous and mischievous feel to the show’s rogues. “So somewhere between Star Wars pirates and Monkey Island pirates. I think we found our sweet spot,” says Watts.
The series promises to be a unique blend of adventure and danger, following four children who stumble upon a secret and embark on a quest to return to their home planet. The journey places them against fearsome pirates, with The Mandalorian‘s executive producers Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau eager to delve deeper into the pirate culture of the galaxy.
Filoni serves as the series’ creative “goalkeeper,” guiding the development and ensuring the show fits within the established Star Wars universe without breaking canon. “We will come up with ideas, and then he’ll be like, ‘Actually, maybe it’s this.’ Or, ‘Oh, we already did something like that somewhere else,’” adds Watts.
A new image of Jude Law’s Jod Na Nawood is also revealed (via EW).
Skeleton Crew premiers on Disney+ with the first two episodes on Dec. 3.