Katee Sackhoff Admits ‘The Mandalorian’ Role Left Her Broken and Doubting Herself

Katee Sackhoff has opened up about the struggles she faced while playing Bo-Katan Kryze in The Mandalorian, admitting the role took a heavy toll on her confidence.

Sackhoff first brought Bo-Katan to life in the animated shows The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels, where she voiced the character. Later, she stepped into live action for The Mandalorian, appearing in season 2 and taking on an even bigger part in season 3.

On her YouTube series The Sackhoff Show, in a conversation with actor Tahmoh Penikett, she spoke honestly about what happened behind the scenes.

“I lost all of my confidence after Mandalorian,” Sackhoff said, explaining why she turned to an acting coach. “All of it… My style of acting has always just been, ‘Your first instinct is the right instinct. Do that. Play the reality of the situation.’ ”

“And I’ve never really played a character. Do you know what I mean? Like, I’ve always played two steps removed from myself, in a sense. It always felt grounded in some part of my belly of who I was.”

She went on to explain that Bo-Katan felt different from any character she had taken on before. “Bo-Katan is nowhere near who I am as a human being. Her life, what she wants, I didn’t understand her. As much as I understood her, I never felt her in my stomach. I never identified with her. I didn’t know how to find her… And it broke me.”

“It just broke me, where I started doubting everything about myself. I’m not a strong auditioner on tape, and I was having to put myself on tape. I wasn’t booking anything. And for three years, I basically didn’t work. And it just destroyed my confidence.”

While The Mandalorian will continue with a new movie called The Mandalorian & Grogu, it’s still unclear when or if Sackhoff’s Bo-Katan will appear again. If she does return, Star Wars fans might expect to see her next in Ahsoka season 2. For now, though, fans will have to wait and see what the future holds for the character.

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