Jude Law’s character inStar Wars: Skeleton CrewisStar Wars’best chance to create a“whole new kind of Jedi”and I’m so excited by the possibilities. ThoughSkeleton Crewdoes take place in the same era asThe MandalorianandAhsoka, it is – so far, at least – unburdened by the weight of the New Republic storyline and the return of the Imperial Remnant. This has allowed it to carve out its own, peculiar niche, a ’80s-style treasure adventure featuring a band of lost kids and a mysterious pirate who may or may not be genuinely Force-sensitive.
Over the last few years,Star Warshas examined what it means to be a Jedi and how different periods and circumstances affect how Jedi communicate with and experience the Force. Grogu’s experiences of Order 66, Ahsoka’s reluctance to face her past, Sabine Wren’s newly unleashed connection with the Force, and the Jedi of the High Republic era have all been learning to cope with trauma, violence, and guilt. I believe – or I hope, at least –Jude Law’sSkeleton Crewcharacteris part of this trend as well.
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Skeleton Crew Implies Jod Na Nawood Doesn’t Have The Force, But I Don’t Think That’s True
Jod Na Nawood, a.k.a. Captain Silvo, a.k.a.Crimson Jack, has demonstrated his ability to use a few Force-sensitive tricks, like making the brig keys float and turning off all the lights on the kids’ decrepit ship. However, as Fern quickly points out, these tricks don’t necessarily prove he can access the Force; illusions are a thing, and Jod could simply be trying to gain their trust by pretending to be a Jedi. I don’t think that’s true, though – or at least,I’m hoping there’s a reason Jod’s skills with the Force are so rudimentary.
Jude Law himself recently hintedthat Jod Na Nawood may indeed be able to access the Force and that this could be a crucial part of his backstory (which, much to my dismay, likely won’t be revealed until the end of the show).“That doesn’t really come out until right near the end when you really get an insight into his backstory and why he may be a Force user and is Force-sensitive,”he explained in an interview withEntertainment Weekly.
Law continued,“I would say is that he’s not someone who’s had a childhood. He’s someone who’s kind of had his childhood snatched away from him.”To me, at least, it sounds very much like Law is telling us Jod Na Nawood is Force-sensitive – though that may just be wishful thinking on my part – and that the childhood trauma he experienced may have been the result of surviving the genocide of the Jedi after Emperor Palpatine enacted Order 66.
I truly want Jude Law’s character to be a new kind of Jedi, but perhaps more importantly, I want him to be a new kind of Order 66 survivor.
In the lead-up toSkeleton Crew’s release, co-creator Christopher Ford mentioned that he and John Watts wanted tocreate a“whole new kind of Jedi.”That has to refer to Jod, no? Unless Kerry Condon’s Fara surprisingly reveals that she was once a Jedi, I don’t see who else it could be. I truly want Jude Law’s character to be a new kind of Jedi, but perhaps more importantly, I want him to be a new kind of Order 66 survivor.
Jod Being An Order 66 Survivor Makes Sense
All in all, Jod having access to the Force and being anOrder 66 survivormakes sense. Order 66 occurred in 19BBY (19 years before the Battle of Yavin inA New Hope); what’s been depicted of the New Republic era inThe Mandalorian,The Book of Boba Fett, andAhsokatakes place between roughly 9ABY-12ABY (after the Battle of Yavin). If we assumeSkeleton Crewtakes place around the same time – which would make sense, as it includes a cameo fromThe Mandalorianseason 3 – then about 30 years have passed between Order 66 andSkeleton Crew.
As such, Jod Na Nawood could have been anything from a youngling to a Padawan or even a young Jedi Knight by the time Order 66 was implemented, depending on Jod’s age. Given Law’s comments about Jod’s ruined childhood and his seemingly elementary skills with the Force, however, I’d guess he was just a youngling when the Jedi Order was decimated.
Star Wars Has Learned From Ahsoka’s Marrok Mistake: Why Jude Law’s True Identity Was No Secret
Star Wars has learned from its mistakes, ensuring that the mystery of Jude Law’s character in Skeleton Crew doesn’t overshadow the rest of the story.
Anakin Skywalker may have slaughtered a great many younglings, but we know that some survived. Grogu was taken off-world, and Reva clung to life as she lay surrounded by the bodies of her friends. There’s no reason Jod couldn’t have survived the onslaught at the Jedi Temple, too. If that’s true,his childhood would have been“snatched”away from him twice – once when he was taken from his family to join the Order, and again when the Jedi were destroyed.
There’s More To Star Wars Than Jedi vs. Sith & Light vs. Dark
If all of that turns out to be true, then it would make sense that Jod is a Jedi unlike any we’ve ever seen. When it comes to Order 66 survivors, there are essentially two camps: those who (eventually) continue their work as Jedi, as Obi-Wan Kenobi, Kanan Jarrus, Cal Kestis, and Ahsoka Tano have done, and those who fall to the dark side, either because they’re seeking answers and some kind of higher power, like Baylan Skoll and Taron Malicos, or because they were driven and tortured to become one of Darth Vader’s Inquisitors.
There’s very little, if anything, in between. Other Order 66 survivors were eventually hunted down and killed. While the Jedi who stay true to the light after experiencing such horrors are incredibly admirable, and it’s understandable why some fall to the dark side after such trauma,I want to see a story about a Jedi survivor who just … survived.I want that someone to be Jod Na Nawood.
Maybe Jod uses the Force casually, occasionally, viewing it as part of him but not the entirety of his identity.
Maybe Jod was a Jedi youngling. Maybe he’d had a few lessons, learned the basics of using the Force, and decided that, instead of putting himself in danger again, he’d use those basic skills with the Force to survive in a galaxy that was out to get him. Engaging in piracy doesn’t mean he’s using the dark side of the Force – after all, there are quite a few full-fledged Jedi who used less than savory means to fight against the Empire during the Galactic Civil War, too.
Maybe Jod uses the Force casually, occasionally, viewing it as part of him but not the entirety of his identity.Star Warshas always been about the ultimate, overpowering fight between good vs. evil, the Jedi vs. the Sith, butperhaps it’s time forStar Warsto explore characters and situations that are more nuanced, less black and white.
Jod doesn’t feel like an extremely evil pirate; he’s an opportunist, a gambler, dangerous in a less immediate way. A character like that who was also taught the ways of the Jedi has the potential to be one of Disney-eraStar Wars’most intriguing, complex characters. IfStar Wars: Skeleton Crewpulls this off the way I hope it does, we might indeed get to see a“whole new kind”of Force-user.
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew
Cast
Skeleton Crew follows four ordinary children who become lost in the expansive Star Wars galaxy. As they navigate unfamiliar worlds and the challenges they present, the group endeavors to find their way back to their home planet, undertaking a journey across the iconic Star Wars universe.
