Why Wedge Antilles is in Aardman’s Star Wars short

Season 2 of Star Wars Visions is upon us, with none other than stop-motion animation house Aardman directing a short set in a galaxy far, far away. Dexerto spoke with the director herself, Magdalena Osinska, about why she decided to bring back Wedge Antilles in the eagerly anticipated new episode. 

While Disney+ has seen the Star Wars franchise open up to explore a whole new direction from the original movies, with the likes of The Mandalorian, Andor, and The Acolyte, Star Wars Visions is distinct in that it allows its creators to deliver their own spin on the space opera universe while still serving the source material with its themes and imagery. 

Unlike the first season of Lucasfilm’s animated anthology series, which brought together a number of imaginative minds from Japan’s anime industry, the second chapter features creators from across the globe. A name that arguably caught most people’s eyes in the Star Wars Visions Season 2 lineup was Aardman, the award-winning studio behind the likes of Wallace and Gromit and Chicken Run. 

Its episode, titled ‘I Am Your Mother’ (get it?), combines two of our childhood obsessions, and Dexerto were able to catch up with the short’s director Magdalena Osinska to find out more about the inspiration behind it, and why the Aardman crew decided to bring back a fan favorite character.

Warning: spoilers for Star Wars Visions Season 2 episode ‘I Am Your Mother’ ahead!

Why Wedge Antilles is in Aardman’s Star Wars short

In an exclusive interview with Dexerto, Osinska opened up about the decision to include Wedge Antilles, the rebel pilot who survived the attack on the first Death Star to become a respected veteran of Rogue Squadron in the original Star Wars movie trilogy. 

As well as delivering the pilot in claymation form, the team were able to get the character’s OG actor Denis Lawson to voice him. The episode itself focuses on the mother-daughter relationship between Twi’lek pilot trainee Anni and her mom Kalina. Anni feels embarrassed by her mom, so much so that she doesn’t tell her about a family racing event that is being hosted by Wedge. 

Visions gives creators the freedom to either draw from established characters or create entirely new ones in their own timelines, and Aardman’s entry certainly leans into the former with its return of the Rebel pilot. “We were looking for some kind of hero idol that Anni, the daughter, will look up to,” explains Osinska. 

“It had to be a pilot in the right era of Star Wars where our episode fits in. We considered different pilots and heroes, but it seemed like he was the most suitable one. We really wanted Wedge, but also I was really excited that we were able to work with the actor who played Wedge in the original trilogy.”

Elaborating on his significance within the narrative, Osinska adds: “He was meant to be this celebrated character who Anni looks up to but she kind of forgets that actually it’s her mom who taught her a lot.”

The Aardman icon went on to say that working with Lawson was “amazing,” adding: “It felt very special to have someone who worked on the original trilogy working with us.”

Star Wars Visions Seasons 1 & 2 are available to stream on Disney+ now. You can check out our other Star Wars coverage here.