The world of Star Wars has always felt full of opportunities for exploration, thanks to the variety of mediums used to tell stories about life in a galaxy far, far away. But the Disney+ anthology series Star Wars: Visions stands out for the rich array of new narratives explored in the nine short films, directed by legends from the world of anime, with truly impressive voice casts tasked to bring these Skywalker-free stories to life.
The final installment, "Akakiri," is a remarkably intimate story from the studio Science SARU, featuring the tale of Tsubaki, a Jedi whose reunion with an old lover ends in tragedy for her and a descent into the dark side for him. Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians, The Gentleman) was tapped to play the English-language version of the character, and as he reveals in the interview below, he didn't think twice about saying yes. He also told Collider why he wanted to play Tsubaki with a British accent, teased a little bit about the upcoming film Assassin Club, and why he's more than eager to take on other roles in the Star Wars universe.
Collider: To start off, how did you get involved with the show originally?
HENRY GOLDING: Wow. I think I was actually in London, filming for Netflix's Persuasion, the Jane Austen adaptation. And I think one of the Disney reps sent word to one of my agents in LA. And it was just a no-brainer, of course. There's no doubt I'd be on board — when they wanted me, I was 100 percent. So, I mean, I love this format and how kind of transformative it is, I think, for the ... I suppose for not only the series, but the whole ecosystem of Star Wars. This takes everything in such an amazing spin. And I'm a huge anime fan. So doubling up, I was jumping at the chance, to be honest.
When you got the invitation to join, do you get the script? Did you also get like more backstory? Because what's so interesting about the short is how you thrown into everything.
GOLDING: Yeah. I mean, that's the interesting thing especially with this particular episode is that this so much off screen and so much backstory that you don't kind of see, but obviously interpret through this kind of window into this reality, like the backstory with Misa and Tsubaki. What I got is kind of the scripts in general. And also, they were kind enough to send over some of the visuals prior to actually going into the studio. And so, I could feel out the character and give what I think would kind of match and suit with that particular character.
It's funny, because I don't have a great ear for accents, but I'm fairly certain that what you're doing in the short is relatively British.
GOLDING: Yeah, it's pretty much British. And I think that was sort of my homage to when everybody was kind of British, when watching all the old sort of older Star Wars films and things like that, especially Obi-Wan Kenobi and the classics. So for me, it was it was a nice little nod to that world.
So that was totally your choice?
GOLDING: Yeah. Yeah. To be honest, they didn't give much direction at all, in terms of how we wanted to read it. And coming off doing Persuasion, I was in that world already. So it was so much easier to kind of float in that space rather than kind of change it up.
Now, of course, I'm wondering how Jane Austen would or wouldn't be improved by adding lightsabers?
GOLDING: Yeah, I mean, I think that would be an insane sort of cross-medium of very different generations of storytelling, for sure.
Of course. In terms of Visions as a whole, have you gotten to watch the whole thing?
GOLDING: I've just been on a job in Italy for the past two months, whilst they all came out, but I watched the episodes last night with my wife. And I watched "The Duel," which is ... Obviously, I watched my own first, and then I went back to the start, and I watched "The Duel," which is phenomenal. I mean, the class of studios that they got together for this, it's just unreal, the best of the best.
So I know that when I grew up loving Star Wars, I cast myself as certain characters, or tried to imagine living in certain worlds. Growing up, did you have similar experiences?
GOLDING: I was a pedestrian fan. I know how deep Star Wars goes, so I no way want to challenge the fandom. But of course, I watched every film and read some of the comics, and grew up with Knights of the Old Republic, video games and things like that. I love that kind of world, in which they explore outside of the Skywalker legacy, and so for me, to see something new and kind of envisioned by these amazing anime creators, it was so exciting for me, because we've been following this legacy of the storyline so far, but I think it's exciting to see the bigger picture of Star Wars and where Disney wants to take it in the future.
You literally touched on what I was curious about, which is just the idea of life outside the Skywalker Saga.
GOLDING: I mean, it's an endless, endless sort of opportunity to tell other stories and to tell other little pockets and corners of the universe, where perhaps the empire had never reached, or just a different time and a different place. There's so many stories that can be told. I love that. I think as a Star Wars fan, you have to be excited. You're on the precipice of big change. I think, especially with the response that Visions have had, of how refreshing it's been... It's given you a glimpse into what could be, now that they decided to expand.
I think also the advantage of storytelling like this is that you can have surprising or darker ends to things. Your short has a pretty dark final note.
GOLDING: Yeah. I mean, it's definitely reminiscent of the previous story of Anakin and Padme. And it kind of has that story essence. But I think it definitely was unexpected for a lot of viewers and things. And that moment Tsubaki is like, "Yes, my master." Oh, man, recording those voiceovers, I literally was just like, "What?" So yeah, it was such a great twist and quite an impactful episode, so different to the rest, where there's huge visual flare and massive combat sequences. But this one has had a lot of heart and a sacrifice.
So now that you've gotten to play in the Star Wars universe, do you have a sense of other franchises that you want to be a part of?
GOLDING: I feel as though we've only touched the whole sort of Star Wars as a kind of potential, I suppose, world to kind of live in as an actor. With everything that's happening with Disney+ and how much potential there is, I'd love to come back in something much bigger and more impressive. Yeah, I mean, it's such exciting times. Which kid in their right mind didn't want to be a Jedi growing up? So I guess it's finding the right storyline, or it's creating a story. Like we've been discussing, the possibilities are literally endless. But yeah, who knows? I'd definitely be up for the challenge.
So more Star Wars is the answer then?
GOLDING: I hope so. I really hope so. Yeah.
In terms of other things you've got lined up, I heard about this film you're doing, Assassin Club — what can you tease about that?
GOLDING: Yeah, this one's a really fun action thriller, got a fantastic cast. We've got Noomi Rapace, Sam Neill, absolute legends, Daniela Melchior from Suicide Squad. So we just wrapped in Italy. So that's what I go back from. And yeah, it's all lives in the world of kind of hit-men, assassins and the contract that kind of goes wrong and throws everybody into this kind of spaghetti mess of killing and crazy stuff. But it was amazing filming in Italy, to be honest. It was two, three months of keeping in shape and staying on a really crazy schedule. So to come back and just be able to relax is so nice.
I believe it. Persuasion of course, is a very different thing from that. Going forward, are you looking to balance stunt-heavy work with less stunt-heavy work?
GOLDING: Yeah, that's a great question. Because whenever you're doing a big action sort of scene, it's kind of like, "Oh, I can't wait to do those dramas again. Jesus." When you're beaten up, and you've got whiplash from sort of throwing your head back a lot. And it's kind of like, "Oh, just a nice little rom-com would be great for the next movie." So I guess it's kind of pacing it out and finding the right scripts.
Star Wars: Visions is streaming now on Disney+.