DUBAI: “Skeleton Crew” — the latest TV series from the “Star Wars” universe to land on the Disney+ platform — ignores the lofty narrative goals of previous efforts like “Andor” and “The Mandalorian” to offer something altogether simpler — and more fun: a children’s adventure story.
“I think there’s something beautiful in the eyes of the children being our eyes and seeing the world of ‘Star Wars’ in its complexity — the threat, the potential, the adventure, the potential for heroics, the potential for drama, the humor, the absurdity — through them. I just find that very refreshing, and I hope people embrace it,” series star Jude Law — who plays the mysterious cad Jod Na Nawood — said at a recent media roundtable at which Arab News was the sole regional representative.
“Skeleton Crew” introduces four young troublemakers: Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), who secretly dreams of being a Jedi one day; Neel (Robert Timothy Smith), Wim’s blue elephant-y best buddy and resident goody-two-shoes; Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), the rebellious, high-achieving daughter of a local official; and KB (Kyriana Kratter), Fern’s tech-whiz bestie.
When Wim discovers a mysterious object buried in the woods close to their neighborhood, the four kids are whisked off on a galaxy-spanning adventure as they try to make their way back home, crossing paths with the likes of Law’s Jod.
Jod Na Nawood (Jude Law) and Neel (Robert Timothy Smith) in ‘Skeleton Crew.’ (Disney)
For 13-year-old Cabot-Conyers, Wim was easy to get a handle on; he said he has been fascinated by Jedis for as long as he can remember.
“Wim really desperately wants an adventure, because he’s stuck in the suburbs, he’s not exactly happy with it. He wants to be a Jedi. The idea of that, to him, is so fascinating. And I thought the Jedi were so cool too. That’s what actually drew me to the ‘Star Wars’ universe, Luke Skywalker interested me so much, and playing that into my performances as Wim really, really helped,” he said.
Series creators Jon Watts and Christopher Ford have had the idea for “Skeleton Crew” for a while, they explained.
“Ford and I both love ‘Star Wars,’” said Watts, “and felt like we had a story to tell that worked well in that universe should we ever be given the opportunity.”
Ford added: “We had always talked about a Jude Law-like character named Jod — that’s probably why we thought of that name. And we couldn’t believe it, when we reached out to him, that no one has asked him to be in ‘Star Wars’ yet. We were the first ones to ask. And it turns out he’s a huge, huge ‘Star Wars’ fan. We gave him a little bit of a background of the project and his character, and he was all in.”
Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), KB (Kyriana Kratter), Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), Neel (Robert Timothy Smith) in ‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.’ (Disney)
For Law, the original “Star Wars” movie, released in 1977, offered a new way of looking at entertainment. “I just have a recollection of the impact of this film on my life and on my family. No one had ever seen anything like it — the bravery of it, the vision and the realization of this incredibly imaginative universe.”
Aside from George Lucas’ sci-fi franchise, “Skeleton Crew” also owes a debt to Steven Spielberg’s early Amblin Entertainment movies, with comparisons already being made to the classic 1985 coming-of-age movie “The Goonies.”
“I don’t think we ever consciously thinking, ‘Oh, let’s make this like Amblin,” said Ford. “But what’s really amazing about the Amblin films — and a lot of the films from that time period — is that they weren’t afraid to let kids be the protagonists, and they didn’t talk down to the kids, and they weren’t afraid to put the kids in real danger. We grew up with those films and we knew we wanted to do something similar. I think it’s just always been in our DNA. When you’re trying to tell an authentic story about a group of kids, you know, you go back to the best films.”
Kratter believes the show has something for everyone, age no bar.
“‘Skeleton Crew’ is kind of like a perfect ‘on ramp’ for a new generation of ‘Star Wars’ fans,” she said. “And not only that, it’s also going to be great their parents, because of its Amblin style, and hopefully they can get a sense of nostalgia from watching the show and also get to see a bunch of Easter eggs in there.”
