How The Mandalorian Explained Absence of Cara Dune After Firing of Controversial Star Gina Carano

Justin Lubin/Lucasfilm Ltd. Gina Carano in The Mandalorian

Fans of The Mandalorian finally have answers as to what would happen to Gina Carano's character Cara Dune, after the actress was fired over her controversial posts on social media.

Carano, 40, played the bounty hunter in the wildly popular Star Wars series and was a key ally to Pedro Pascal's heroic Din Djarin (a.k.a. the Mandalorian). She first appeared in season 1 of the Disney+ show as a hardened warrior from Alderaan, and even helped Djarin rescue the baby Grogu in the finale of season 2.

Wednesday's season 3 premiere addressed the whereabouts of Dune in a conversation between Djarin and High Magistrate Greef Karga.

In the scene, Karga asked Djarin if he wants Dune's old job as a marshall in Nevarro, noting she was no longer around after being promoted to the Special Forces of the New Republic for her role in capturing Moff Gideon (Breaking Bad's Giancarlo Esposito).

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Speaking with Deadline, Executive Producer Rick Famuyiwa said the writers had given a lot of thought to how the story would move forward in the absence of Dune. "Cara was a big part and continues as a character to be part of the world," Famuyiwa told Deadline. "It had to be addressed in the creative, and [executive producer and showrunner Jon Favreau] took the time to think about that."

RELATED: Former Mandalorian Star Gina Carano Starts Work on First Project Since Ousted from Series

Lucasfilm Ltd.

Carano was dismissed from The Mandalorian after she made controversial posts on social media, prompting backlash and calls for her removal from the franchise. In one screenshot captured by a social media user, Carano shared a post from another account that seemingly compared the treatment of conservatives in the U.S. to that of Jewish people during Nazi-era Germany.

In September 2020, the actress and former MMA fighter also came under fire when she changed her Twitter bio to read "beep/bop/boop" — which some people believed was an insensitive reference to preferred pronouns social media users often include in their profile pages.

"They're mad cuz I won't put pronouns in my bio to show my support for trans lives. After months of harassing me in every way. I decided to put 3 VERY controversial words in my bio.. beep/bop/boop I'm not against trans lives at all," she tweeted at the time.

Carano (also known for roles in movies like Haywire and Deadpool) later removed the words. She explained that Pascal — whose sister Lux came out as a transgender woman — helped her "understand why people were putting them in their bios."

"I didn't know before but I do now. I won't be putting them in my bio but good for all you who choose to," she previously wrote in a tweet. "I stand against bullying, especially the most vulnerable & freedom to choose."

She added in another tweet at the time, "Beep/bop/boop has zero to do with mocking trans people & 💯 to do with exposing the bullying mentality of the mob that has taken over the voices of many genuine causes."

Lucasfilm Ltd. The Mandalorian

RELATED: Gina Carano Faces Backlash for Controversial Social Media Posts

The backlash to her social media posts caused the hashtag "#FireGinaCarano" to trend on Twitter. And not long after, LucasFilm confirmed Carano would no longer be involved in the Star Wars project.

"Gina Carano is not currently employed by Lucasfilm and there are no plans for her to be in the future," a LucasFilm rep said in a statement to PEOPLE at the time.

Disney CEO Bob Chapek said Carano's firing from Mandalorian happened because she didn't align with the company's values. He said at the time, per The Hollywood Reporter, that he doesn't think Disney is "left-leaning or right-leaning," and clarified by saying the company stands for "values that are universal — values of respect, values of decency, values of integrity and values of inclusion."

The Mandalorian is streaming now on Disney+.