Why Bo-Katan In The Mandalorian Looks So Familiar - Looper (2024)

Disney/Lucasfilm

ByPatrick PhillipsNov. 13, 2020 2:37 pm EST

Just three episodes in, the new season of the smash Disney+ hitThe Mandalorian has continued to see Mando and the Child exploring parts yet unseen in the galaxy far, far away. It's also found them encounteringcreatures too frightful to mention for those who fear things with more than four legs.

Episode 3 of The Mandalorian's second season thankfully took a bit ofa break from the creature feature fantasia that dominated the first two episodes.Well, sort of.Titled "The Heiress," the latest chapter in Mando's quest to return the Child to his people saw the duo hitting the high seas, and indeed running into yet another beastly foe. Luckily, Mando also ran into some people of his own as he and the Child are helped out of their jam by a band of Mandalorian allies.

While this episode ofThe Mandalorian expands the world of the weapon-worshipping religious sect in fascinating new ways,the arrival of those helmet-eschewing allies undoubtedly delighted die hardStar Warsfans, because there are some veryfamiliar Clone Warsnames involved. Chief among this is Bo-Katan, who featured prominently in the beloved animated series as the head of House Kryze, and former Regent of Mandalore.

She was also the one-time wielder of the Darksaber, whose history she also details in "The Heiress." While StarWarsfans were no doubt elated to hear that story and see Bo-Katan in the flesh, they were likely just as happy to see the face of the actor portraying the fearsome warrior, as she also voiced the character in the animated series. Her name is Katee Sackhoff, and any true sci-fi fan should be quite familiar with her face.

Here's why Bo-Katan fromThe Mandalorianlooks so familiar.

NBC Universal Television

If you do call yourself a true sci-fi fan, Katee Sackhoff's face is probably familiar to you because it was often front and center on one of the best-loved sci-fi programs of the past two decades. That series was Ronald D. Moore's utterly brilliant modern update of the classic sci-fi sagaBattlestar Galactica, which found the last remnants of humanity on the run from a murderous race of man-made android enemies, and in desperate search of a fabled planet that may serve as mankind's new home.

The series premiered on Syfy back in 2004, and quickly became a massive hit with both fans of the original 1970s show and those who'd never heard of Adama, Apollo, Cylons, or Viper fighters. Even if they'd never heard those names, it's possible they had heard the name Starbuck before — not only from the pages of Herman Melville's iconic novelMoby Dick, but also because the hotshot Viper pilot's name was probably the most prominent to arise from the originalBattlestar Galacticaseries.

Portrayed by DirkBenedict in the original series, Starbuck got a much-needed modernizing for the Syfy series reboot, with Moore transforming the co*cksure pilot into a fearsome femme the likes of which sci-fi fans had never really seen before. And yes, Katee Sackhoff was the actor tasked with resurrecting that character for the newBattlestar Galactica.To simply say she did that would be a gross understatement, though. More than any actor in the series, Sackhoff didn't just resurrect her character — she wholly reinvented it, delivering what can only be described as a towering performance almost too big even for the epic series around it.

The CW

Of course, if you've somehow slept onBattlestar Galactica over the years, it's possible you recognize Katee Sackhoff form a plethora of other notable small screen turns as the actor has also appeared on the likes ofLongmire,24, and most recently Netflix'sAnother Life. She also turned up in a certain CW Arrowverse hit as one of DC Comics' toughest underground kingpins.

That Arrowverse hit is none other thanThe Flash, which means the underground in question belongs to Barry Allen's (Grant Gustin)hometown of CentralCity. And yes, that was indeed Katee Sackhoff portraying the nefarious Amunet Black on the hit CW drama. A meta-human with significant power, Amunet Black was the premiere dealer of weaponizing tech on Central City's black market, and therefore supplied many of Team Flash's foes with the destructive tools of their villainous trades. In turn, Amunet Black's business dealings more often than not put her in direct conflict with Barry and his allies.

In spite of her prominent role in the CentralCity underworld, Sackhoff's character appeared in just six episodes ofThe Flash during its seven-season run on the CW, most of which came during the series' fourth season. But even in such a limited capacity, Sackhoff more than made her mark on the series, crafting a villainess as ruthless, relentless, and delightfully devious as any that ever faced off against Barry and his do-gooding gang — even if the character doesn't always get the respect she so richly deserves.

Intrepid Pictures/Blumhouse Productions

While Katee Sackhoff has largely made her name on television, the actor has managed to rack up some impressive big screen credits over the years. She actually got her first big break after landing a key role in 2002's flawed but funHalloween sequelHalloween: Resurrection, and has since appeared ingenre delights like 2013's Riddickand 2016's gothic chiller Don't Knock Twice.

If you want to see Katee Sackhoff at her big screen best, however, look no further than the 2013 creeper she made with Mike Flanagan.Yes,that Mike Flanagan, the very genre mastermind behind such modern horror classics as Hush,Gerald's Game,Doctor Sleep, and Netflix's breathtakingTheHaunting of Hill House series.

Before delivering those frightful delights to the masses, Flanagan actually scored a modest hit with a little haunted mirror creeper by the name ofOculus.It's understandable if the term"haunted mirror" made you cringe a little. And the initial setup of Flanagan's Oculus (which follows a woman attempting to clear her brother of murder charges by proving the culprit was actually the haunted artifact in question) really is a bit silly. But if Flanagan has proven anything over the years, it's that he can turn even the silliest of premises into a soul-stirring and genuinely terrifyingcinematic treat (see also 2016's Ouija: Origin of Evil).

That's just what Flanagan does withOculus, delivering a haunted mirror marvel that simply has no business being as effective as it is. Flanagan bolsters the film's impact by pulling brilliant turns form his cast, including Karen Gillan (Guardians of the Galaxy), BrentonThwaites(Maleficent), Rory Cochran(Dazed and Confused), and a never better Katee Sackhoff as the tragically departed family matriarch.