This is The Way: An Argument for Romani Representation in Live-Action StarWars Projects.

On May 1st, I posted a StarWars fan-cast idea on my Instagram page to see how some of my followers would react. The casting idea I had in my was for Sabine Wren, one of the main protagonists of the 2015 animated series StarWars: Rebels. The casting choice I had in mind for Sabine was a Spanish-Roma actress named Hiba Abouk. This resulted from a head canon that believed she was of Roma or Southwest Asian origin. In addition, Ms. Abouk herself coming very to resembling a live-action version of the animated character, and I even tagged both Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni’s Instagram pages hoping they could take Hiba into consideration.

A week later on May 15, I ended up sharing my casting choice on a StarWars fan page on Facebook to see how other fans would react to the idea. Most of the comments were positive, but some showed concern about Hiba being “too white” to play Sabine, since she viewed as being of Asian heritage of some sort. Still, most of the fans liked the idea of seeing a Roma actress play Sabine and found the representation it could bring to live-action StarWars shows to be a positive one.

For this argument, I will talk about the character Sabine Wren, the history of Roma people, the long controversial history of Roma representation in media, and why a Roma actress like Hiba Abouk should be cast as Sabine Wren in live-action.

Who is Sabine Wren?

As one of the main protagonists of StarWars: Rebels, Sabine Wren was a Mandalorian warrior who was an expert at explosive weaponry with a gift for graffiti art. As a member of the Ghost crew, which included her fellow Roma, Kanan Jarrus (also known as Caleb Dume), Sabine used her bomb-making skills to help fight against the Empire, and would often mark it all off with some spray paint. Like many Mandalorians, Sabine was a nomadic bounty huntress alongside her friend Ketsu Onyo before being recruited by the Twi’lek pilot, Captain Hera Syndulla, to join her rebel crew. She even helped her parents in the Mandalorian Civil War before returning to her Rebel family and aiding them in their struggle against the Empire.

Currently, in Disney canon, Sabine joined Jedi outcast Ahsoka Tano in a canonically ongoing search for her best friend Ezra Bridger.

Who are the Romani People?

The Roma are a nomadic people that originated from Iran, Pakistan, and Northern India, and entered Europe around the tenth century C.E. Their colonial counterparts nicknamed them “Gypsies” because they thought they were Egypt when that is not the case. These people can comprise different tribes and nations, just like Sabine’s people, the Mandalorians.

The Roma speak the Romani language, which is based on Sanskrit, the classical language of pre-colonial India, and other Southwestern Asian countries. They also practice various religions such as Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, and even Islam, even though these practices may have resulted from being converted into those faiths during their travels across Iran, Turkey, and the Balkans.

Prior to World War Two, many Roma traditionally worked as craft workers, blacksmiths, dealers, toolmakers, and performers. During the early 20th century, countries such as Germany and Spain were home to various businesses that were owned by Romani shopkeepers. As a result, fewer Roma people were living the traditional nomadic lifestyle since many settled to establish their own communities across the European continent. However, this was all depended on their occupations.

By the start of World War Two in 1939, around 1.5 million Roma lived across Europe alone, but half of them lived in the eastern parts of the continent.

Over the years, government officials across Europe have subjected Romani people to mass persecution in forms of slavery, ethnic cleansing, and for some, sterilization. During World War Two, the Nazis considered the dark-skinned Roma people to be a “threat” to their racist plans. As a result, Roma communities suffered persecution along with Jewish and LGBTQ populations under Nazi rule.

Today, Roma culture comprises distinct elements from South Asia and Eastern Europe.

Romani People in Media

In many Hollywood and literary works across the Western Hemisphere, the Roma people are portrayed negatively. In western literature, they often portray the Roma people as “cunning criminals” with an interest in the occult. In both music and in theater, Romani women and non-binary people are viewed as social outcasts of sexual tendencies while remaining mysterious at the same time.

One famous example of a depiction of the Romani people in media is Victor Hugo’s classic novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame. They have adapted this novel in various films, plays, and shows, and it features a Romani character named Esmeralda. While they portrayed her as being of Roma origin in Disney’s 1996 animated film adaptation, this was not the case at all in the original story. She was a French orphan who adopted by a Romani family. What’s even worse is the fact that her story reinforces the negative stereotype of Romani people being thieves and seducing people sexually.

The Disney-owned Marvel actually has a few characters who are canon Roma. For example, Victor Von Doom (Doctor Doom), one of the principal antagonists of the Fantastic Four lore, was born into a well-known Romani clan in the fictional eastern European nation of Latveria. Avengers team members and fellow “mutants” Wanda and Pietro Maximoff (Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver), are the children of a Romani witch mother (Natalya Maximoff) and a Jewish mutant father (Max “Magnus” Eisenhardt). However, their Romani heritage had been ignored by white writers throughout the years, which caused controversy in 2015 when the two siblings were introduced into Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe series of films and shows. Much of it was because it reimagined them as white, Eastern Europeans rather than being of Romani origin like they are in the comics.

In the early 2000s, the StarWars: New Jedi Order series of novels depicted an alien race known as the Ryn. The Roma people inspired these characters. Around the same time, however, the movie line had introduced Bail Organa, a Roma character of South Asian origin, as the step-father of Princess Leia, daughter of his friend Padme Amidala, and her husband Anakin Skywalker (Darth Vader). This character would appear in the animated StarWars shows and canon novels as one of the franchise’s most important characters. By the time Disney became the parent owner of the franchise, four more characters of Roma origin had been introduced-Kanan Jarrus (Caleb Dume), Doctor Aprha, Depa Billaba, and of course, Sabine Wren.

Reason to Cast Sabine With a Roma Actress (StarWars is a Romani Narrative)

As far as depictions of the Roma people in media go, the closest thing to a positive representation of them would have to be Disney’s StarWars canon. While the Pre-2015 Extended Universe series of novels and games depicted the Roma as racial stereotypes, the Disney era appears to be doing them some justice.

For example, they depict Bail Organa as a politician who works to find solutions to secure peace to the galaxy on behalf of his doomed homeworld of Alderaan. Doctor Aprha is a half-Roma, half-East Asian Imperial archeologist who seeks redemption for her past crimes after surviving an attempt on her life at the hands of the Empire.

Both Depa Billaba and Kanan Jarrus’ Jedi occupations can be viewed as a reflection of the persecution the Roma people faced in the past, and continue to do so in certain parts of the world. This is especially true during the COVID-19 Pandemic when certain countries blamed Romani communities for the outbreaks despite there being no positive COVID-19 test results among them. As Kanan’s story continued into StarWars: Rebels, his story became more than just one about some Jedi teaching some force-sensitive teenager how to use the force but more about a story of keeping a culture alive. Romani communities are still thriving because they are the descendants of the Roma who, despite centuries of persecution by western colonists, they kept their culture alive by passing it on to the next generation of Roma, who in return, will pass it to their next of kin. From there, the cycle of passing on a culture that is rooted in South Asian and Eastern European traditions, will never end for the Roma. Sadly, Kanan would not live long enough to see his padawan carry on the beliefs of the Jedi people, for like his master and fellow Roma, Depa Billaba before him, Kanan would sacrifice himself to save Ezra and their little found family.

Then you have Sabine Wren, the Roma Mandalorian warrior who fights the Empire through her talent of making explosives and expressing it throughout her graffiti art. Sabine’s story is also a Roma narrative as well. Her story is about how a nomadic Mandalorian who would normally work alone would end up using her talents for technology and art to help people, and free them from Imperial rule by teaming up with members of the Rebellion. This also includes members of the Ghost crew, who in place of the birth family she lost during the Mandalorian Civil War, became her found family. Her story does not involve her seducing people, nor does it involve her stealing to survive because she’s not a negative stereotype that Sabine’s fellow Roma is associated with, sadly. She wears a typical Mandalorian armor that is decorated with her artistic sensibilities and wears her colorful armor proudly. Oh, did I mention that she’s also Mandalorian royalty? Her mother was a countess to Clan Wren.

By casting a Romani actress as Sabine Wren, Disney would not only remain committed to its promise to cast talent of color in lead roles but also, provide the opportunity to showcase Roma talent that can offer better role models to Roma children and teens who normally don’t have positive character representations of their culture. A Roma actress like Hiba Abouk portraying Sabine would be a pleasant change for the Roma community in terms of cultural representation in western media.

Conclusion

As the StarWars franchise continues to place Latin America-based talent in the main spotlight, it should also do the same thing for Romani talent as well. Especially with the number of characters of Roma origin who all have the potential to share the same spotlight as Pedro Pascal’s Din Djarin, Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka Tano, and Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor. After all, the positive representation of real-life ethnic groups in media really matters more than anything.