Disney+ and Disney Jr.’s brand-newStar WarsseriesYoung Jedi Adventuresfollows a group of Jedi Younglings as they make their home on a new world and train with the iconic Master Yoda (Piotr Michael) as well as the kindly Master Zia (Nasim Pedrad). The trio of Younglings — Kai Brightstar (Jamaal Avery Jr.), Lys Solay (Juliet Donenfeld) and Nubs (Dee Bradley Baker) — also befriend local young pilot Nash Durango (Emma Berman) and develop a rivalry with adolescent space pirate, Taborr (Trey Murphy).
In a new interview with Collider, Avery Jr. and Murphy sat down with Collider’sArezou Aminto talk about the most exciting parts of makingYoung Jedi Adventures, what their firstStar Warsexperiences were, their favorite thing about their characters, and settling the age-old question: who’s cuter, Nubs or RJ?
COLLIDER: So very exciting guys. Congratulations on the show! Were you bothStar Warsfans before you got the job, or did this kind of make you a fan? Was this your introduction?
TREY MURPHY: Okay, my dad saw the first three original movies, four, five and six, when he was a kid, so he’s always been deeply invested inStar Wars. And my firstStar Warsmovie I saw wasThe Phantom Menacein theaters when they brought it back for an event. So I’ve always been aStar Warsfan. I love all the movies, all the TV shows, so being a part of this is just, it’s incredible. So, I mean, I’m here for the ride.
JAMAAL AVERY JR: My first Star Wars experience was– so all my friends watched Star Wars, we were all big superhero fans, they all watchedStar Wars, and were like, “Jamaal, you should watch it. I’m like, “Okay.” I watched it, I was completely terrified [laughs]. I’m like, “I can’t tell them I was scared of it because then they’re all gonna make fun of me!” And so I was like, “Oh, yeah, I loved it,” and they’re like, “Alright, let’s go watch it at the movie theater,” and I’m like, “Huh?”
And then as I got older, I’m like, “Okay, we’re gonna watch it again,” and then it wasn’t as scary. I think now more than ever because it’s like, I’m a Jedi and I’m like, if you put me in a room with this guy, I’ll be like, “I’m gonna take him now. I’m a Jedi, let’s go!”
Which one was the one that scared you? Do you remember?
AVERY JR: It wasThe Empire Strikes Back.
Okay, very fair, very fair. Darth Vader gets a lot of time in that one and he is quite terrifying. So what has the experience of all this been like? Have you guys gotten to do anything cool since getting the job?
AVERY JR: Yeah, I think the coolest part for me working withStar Wars: Young Jediwas doing the action sequences. I think that was really fun, and yeah, just playing for pretend [laughs].
MURPHY: I mean, the coolest part for me is, of course, just being with this great group of people. From the directors to the writers, to the producers, they’ve really just helped me grow as an actor, and I mean, it’s just fun. So that’s probably the best part about it is I get to play a cool antagonist, and it’s a joy. I love it.
Have you guys gotten to go to anything like Star Wars Celebration? D23? Have you gotten to have any of those kinds of experiences?
AVERY JR: I’ve been to D23, that was a really fun experience. I met a lot of people there. I would say that’s like my first sort of big event where they had costumes and panels and stuff like that, which I thought that was really cool. And I was like, “Yeah, we should do this more often, and stuff.”
MURPHY: Yeah, I was able to go to Star Wars Celebration, fortunately, and they premiered the first two episodes there, so that was awesome. And I got to meet all the great people I’ve been working with on Zoom in real life. So that was just a joy. I liked it.
So, let’s talk Kai, let’s talk Taborr. What’s your favorite thing about your character?
TREY: Taborr, my favorite thing about him is he’s just complex. I really like working with complex characters because as an actor, it’s more of a joy when your character’s got so many mixed feelings and emotions to it. But I mean, other than that, he’s just cool. Like his outfit is sick and awesome, and I’m glad to play him.
AVERY JR: My favorite thing, I would say, about my character is, it’s just how he goes into when he sees someone in trouble, and he just confronts anyone doing wrong. He’ll be like, “Yo, you should stop doing that,” and he just goes for it with his best foot forward. He looks for the best in everyone he meets, and sometimes he may struggle doing that a lot with villains like Taborr, often, and they like to clash every once in a while.
What’s something that maybe you haven’t seen happen in the show yet, with all the cool Star Wars stuff that you’ve seen watching the movies, what’s something you hope you get to see in the future?
AVERY JR: I mean, I’ve seen a lot of stuff there. You know what would be funny? If Taborr and Kai just, like, switched. I think that’d be a little funny. Like switched out of nowhere, and then they switch, one turns good again, one turns bad, and one turns good, and then they just switch back out of nowhere [laughs]. That’d be very funny.
MURPHY: That’s awesome! I would like to see them grow up.
AVERY JR: Yeah!
MURPHY: Like, what if they turn into adults? And I think that would be awesome seeing how they went from being kids, and Kai learning all Jedi stuff and me learning all my pirate stuff, how that would change when they’re an adult. That’s what I would most likely love to see.
Cool! Alright, controversialYoung Jedi Adventuresquestion; who is cuter, Nubs or RJ?
AVERY JR: They’re tied!
[Laughs] Okay, they’re tied.
MURPHY: That’s a difficult one because, you know, one’s your standard fluffy, cute teddy bear type thing, Nubs, but the other one is just such a cute droid. I mean, I’m gonna have to agree with Jamaal. They’re tied. They’re both just super cute.
Alright, fair enough, fair enough. So, a couple questions to wrap it up. You’ve seen all theStar Warsmovies, who is your favorite character? Do you have a favorite character? Other than your own, you can’t say your own.
AVERY JR: I personally like Ahsoka Tano, she’s one of my favorite Jedi in general. She’s just a really cool character to me. Her and Mace Windu.
MURPHY: It’s a tie for me. I really like Darth Vader, of course. But, I mean, everybody loves Darth Vader. But I really like General Grievous. I think he’s a really cool character. So, for me, it’s tied between those two.
Last question, if you could play anybody else in Star Wars, it doesn’t have to be anything upcoming, it could just be in all of Star Wars, who would you play?
MURPHY: Again, I’m just gonna go for Darth Vader. He’s just the coolest complex antagonist. That’s who I would probably play.
You really like a helmet, huh?
MURPHY: [Laughs] Yeah.
AVERY JR: I would say either Yoda or the Mandalorian. Yoda is very wise, the Mandalorian is very skillful.
