Talisa Garcia has become the first openly trans actress to be cast by in a Lucasfilm production by joining Willow.
The upcoming series will see reprise his role as the , becoming Lucafilm’s first non-Star Wars-related production in five years.
The Falcon And The Winter Soldier star Erin Kellyman joined the cast as Jade, with The Serpent actor Ellie Bamber and Spider-Man: No Way Home’s Tony Revolori also in the line-up.
Talisa, who previously starred in crime drama Baptiste with Tchéky Karyo, is said to have been cast as a Queen and mother to Tony’s character, who joins in the quest to help the princess rescue her twin brother.
She celebrated becoming the first openly trans actor to join a Lucasfilm project with a statement on Instagram, saying that she would spend ‘hours living in a fantasy world’ when she was ‘in so much pain from growing up in the wrong body’.
‘I feel so blessed and honored to be part of the Willow family; this is quite literally the definition of “a dream come true”,’ she wrote.
‘When I was at school I used to drive my teachers crazy, they were always trying to get me to concentrate in class and stop looking out the window daydreaming. It must have been so frustrating for them but there was a reason I was unfocussed.’
Talisa recalled how she would imagine being a princess or a queen ‘in a magical Disney production’, but she ‘would never had dared to tell anyone of these ideas back then as they seemed so impossible’.
‘Here I am, all these years later, an actual queen in a magical Lucasfilm & Disney production. That wild fantasy land that I used to disappear in to for escape and comfort is now reality,’ she stated.
‘So, from one daydreamer to all the others out there… don’t stop! Dreams do come true. Reach for those stars and eventually you’ll find yourself flying higher than you ever thought you could.’
She also thanked Lucasfilm, Disney, Willow and Disney Plus for ‘making it all come true’.
Last month, Disney said that it was committed to after the controversial legislation – known formally as the Parental Rights in Education bill – was written into law by US politicians in Florida, amid heavy criticism that it marginalises the LGBT+ community.
The text of the legislation forbids ‘classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity’ from pre-school to the third grade.
In a statement, the Walt Disney Company said the bill ‘should never have passed and should never have been signed into law’, despite previous criticism for the company and its CEO, Bob Chapek, for their slow response considering the firm is a major employer in the state.
‘Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts, and we remain committed to supporting the national and state organisations working to achieve that,’ the statement read.
‘We are dedicated to standing up for the rights and safety of LGBTQ+ members of the Disney family, as well as the LGBTQ+ community in Florida and across the country.’
Willow is due to premiere on Disney Plus in 2022.
