“Don’t Cut!”: The Mandalorian Star Reveals One Action Scene Out-Take Got Out Of Control

Giancarlo Esposito went above and beyond for one action scene in The Mandalorian. Esposito, who is 65 years old, played Moff Gideon, a warlord intent on taking possession of Mandalore in the hopes of resurrecting part of the Galactic Empire. He also took part in the Great Purge of Mandalore, before taking control of Darksaber for a time. With so much experience as a villainous warrior, it was inevitable that he and Din Djarin would face off on the battlefield.

While filming for The Mandalorian, Esposito gave everything he had to the role. While appearing on the Cinema Therapy YouTube show, Esposito admitted that the show gave him the opportunity to truly dive back into being a physical actor.

When Gideon fought against his costar, Esposito and the other Mandalorian cast members occassionally missed their swings and accidentally struck each other. In one instance, Esposito was hit, fell to the floor, and still demanded that filming continue. The crew was so enthralled that they applauded his efforts. Check out his full quote below:

“This show was a gift, because we get older, some of us sometimes feel like we don’t have the ability to play… and to me, acting is playing. It’s being a child again. It’s being a kid again. And we did everything by the numbers. By the numbers. We counted it. Duck. count, swing. Because I wanted to look like a man of age. Not a 20 year old. And I missed once and got him so hard, that he came back and he missed and put me on the ground. And he hit me so hard with that beskar spear that I went backwards and hit the deck. And as I’m going backwards, I’m going, ‘Don’t cut!’ And I hit the ground, I jumped back up, and we finished that particular take of the fight to applause. Because I didn’t want them to stop. Because what happens is adrenaline takes over. And you’re trying to be careful and not hurt each other, but you have to make it look real. And I think I did.”

Developing…