Mocking a beloved franchise isn't usually the recommended path to take to secure a job as part of it, but apparently it worked in favour for actor and comedian Bill Burr in the lead up to his role as Migs Mayfield on The Mandalorian.
As noted by the Hollywood Reporter, the stand-up comic was recently interviewed on the podcast Your Mom's House where he revealed more about how he came to play the former Imperial Army sharpshooter, despite having a reputation for teasing the franchise and its fans.
"I went to Mike Binder’s birthday party and Jon [Favreau] was there, and he said, ‘Hey, we’re writing this thing. We kind of have you in mind. Do you want to do it?’ And I was like, ‘I don’t know, Jon. I have teased Star Wars people a lot.’ He goes, ‘I know. I listen to the podcast a lot. I think it would be funny if you got in it,” Burr said. “My wife was kicking me under the table and I was like, ‘All right, I’ll do it.’ he continued.
Burr went on to explain that there was a misconception at the time that he truly hated Star Wars. "I just was hating on it as a comic," he told the host. “You see 1,000 people excited about something, you’re going to make fun of it.”
Burr's casting seemingly came as a surprise when it was announced, as the actor had said that he wasn't really a Star Wars/sci-fi fan before accepting the role.
Burr's character, Migs Mayfield, features in both the first and second seasons of The Mandalorian. It has not yet been confirmed whether he will reprise his role for the third time around.
In other Mando related news, the third season of the Disney+ show will go into production soon, with filming for the Book of Boba Fett seemingly now complete. Make sure to check out our review of Season 2 of The Mandalorian, where we said that the show "pulls off an ambitious and epic sophomore season that has plenty of heart and nostalgia."
Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN currently missing his weekly fix of Baby Yoda. You can follow him on Twitter.