Lucasfilm exec Pablo Hidalgo apologizes to a Star Wars fan after seemingly making fun of him on Twitter for his emotional reaction to The Mandalorian.
Lucasfilm executive Pablo Hidalgo apologized to a Star Wars fan on Twitter after seemingly making fun of his emotional reaction to The Mandalorian's season 2 finale. The finale featured the return of an iconic character, coming to Mando's rescue on Moff Gideon's imperial cruiser. Luke Skywalker's reappearance was an exciting one for fans. Using CGI, the show brought back Luke in his prime, with Mando and the rest of the group watching as the Jedi whisked Grogu away.
Prominent Star Wars YouTuber Star Wars Theory live streamed his reaction to the finale. During the stream, the YouTuber watched as the episode quickly went from action spectacle to its nostalgic ending. The streamer had an emotional reaction to Luke's appearance. During the stream, the YouTuber broke down into tears during Luke's cameo. At the end of the episode, he thanked Lucasfilm for making his childhood dreams come true.
On Twitter, Hidalgo responded to the fan's reaction, saying in a since-deleted tweet, "emotions are not for sharing." It was unclear what exactly Hidalgo meant, but Star Wars Theory took it as a dig at his reaction. Upon the backlash, Hidalgo screenshotted the tweet and made it his banner photo, but has since apologized for his insensitive reaction, saying it was not his intention to make fun of the fan.
The relationship between fans and Lucasfilm has been contentious since the maligned prequel trilogy. After Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm, though, those tensions were only exacerbated. Fan reaction to Star Wars: The Last Jedi was brutal and divisive, further driving a wedge between the production company and its fans. In an era with unprecedented fan access to creators and the behind-the-scenes process, fans are unafraid to let their opinions be known. But the opposite is true as well, creators can interact with fans much easier thanks to social media - and Hidalgo is well known for being a very interactive presence on Twitter.
In this instance, the fan's response was one of pure emotion, and Hidalgo's reply to it was not received well. Making fun of him, whether or not it was intentional, is not a good look. Considering many fans see The Mandalorian as correcting the mistakes of both the prequel and sequel trilogies, emotional responses are a given. After years of criticisms - from both fans and even stars of the series, like John Boyega's criticism of Star Wars' handling of characters of color - positive reactions shouldn't be taken lightly. It's unusual for an executive like this at Lucasfilm, let alone any company, to react this way in response to a positive reception and Hidalgo's apology is small step towards rectifying the situation with Star Wars fans.
Source: Star Wars Theory, Pablo Hidalgo
