The actress Rosario Dawson breaks the silence and responds to the criticisms about her role and the allegations of transphobia towards her family.
The last episode of The Mandalorian gave something to talk about. We learned more about Baby Yoda’s past and his real name was finally revealed. But without a doubt for most fans, one of the favorite parts of the Star Wars episode was the appearance of Ahsoka Tano.
Ahsoka first appeared in the Clone Wars animated series and became one of the favorite characters. Therefore, when it was announced that the Jedi would make the jump to live-action, many were excited. But numerous others were not pleased when It was announced that Rosario Dawson would be the interpreter.
Actress Rosario Dawson was one of the fan casts before her official signing was announced. However, like her friend Gina Carano, she received criticism. The main causes were the assault complaints that Rosario Dawson and her family faced. Dedrek Finley, a transsexual man, claims that he was the victim of transphobic attacks by Dawson’s family. These assaults took place when Finley moved to Los Angeles to renovate the Dawson house. He claims that on one of these occasions, Rosario pinned him down so her mother could hit him.
Since joining The Mandalorian, Rosario Dawson hadn’t spoken about the lawsuits. Recently, she broke the silence in an interview with Vanity Fair. Dawson states that she understands that The Mandalorian fans were concerned about her signing on to play the character, and clarified that these accusations were unfounded. In addition to asserting that the vast majority were withdrawn by Finley himself.
“Well, firstly, I just want to say I understand that, and why people were concerned, and are concerned. I would be too if I heard some of those claims. But I mean, as we’re seeing right now in these past months, and just recently, actually, the truth is coming out. Every single claim of discrimination has been dismissed by the person who made them, and as you’ve said, the fact that this is coming from someone I’ve known since I was a teenager, the better part of my life, and who my family was trying to help as we have many times in the past, it really just makes me sad. But I still have a great empathy for him.”
Of the 20 allegations made by Dedrek Finley against Rosario Dawson and her family, 18 were dropped. At the moment there are two on physical altercations, which will be handled by the Los Angeles Court. Next month it will be known if the court will move ahead with these accusations and proceed to trial. Dawson responded to the controversy:
“The reason that all of the discrimination claims were dropped is because they didn’t happen. I was raised in a very inclusive and loving way, and that’s how I’ve lived my entire life. I’ve always used my voice to fight for, lift up, and empower the LGBTQA community, and use my platform to channel trans voices, in fiction and nonfiction work that I’ve produced and directed. So I feel the record is really clear.”
