Posted in: Disney+, TV | Tagged: skeleton crew, star wars

Skeleton Crew: Cabot-Conyers on Living Star Wars Dream, Jude Law

Ravi Cabot-Conyers spoke with Bleeding Cool about living his franchise dream with Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, working with Jude Law, and more.

Ravi Cabot-Conyers is moving up quickly up the Hollywood ladder as an up-and-coming young star. It would be hard-pressed to find any actor these days who made their on-screen debut on Saturday Night Live, even in an uncredited role in 2016. The actor built an impressive filmography, emerging from a child star to an adolescent, appearing in over 15 titles, including Paramount+'s Tell Me A Story, Netflix's #BlackAF, and Disney's Encanto (2021). Cabot-Conyers spoke to Bleeding Cool about what perhaps might be his biggest break in the upcoming Star Wars series Skeleton Crew, growing up on the franchise, prep, co-stars, Jude Law, and flexibility. The series follows four children: Wim (Cabot-Conyers), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), KB (Kyriana Kratter), and Neel (Robert Timothy Smith), as they end up on an adventure to make their way home after being lost in the galaxy following a discovery they make on their home planet with the help of Force-user Jod Na Nawood (Law).

How Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Offers a New Entry Point for the Franchise

Bleeding Cool: Before you got 'Skeleton Crew,' did you follow Star Wars growing up?

I grew up in a huge Star Wars household. My dad is the biggest Star Wars fan you'll ever meet. He's loved the franchise since he was little. He saw it with his brothers and had an awesome experience at the theater. I've been around and been exposed to Star Wars since I was five. I watched 'A New Hope' (1977) with my sister and my dad. He was so obsessed that he wanted a themed rug in our living room, and my mother was like, "No! We're not doing that!" She was not on board with it, not that she wasn't a fan of the franchise, but she felt the rug was a little bit excessive. I've loved Luke Skywalker in 'A New Hope.' That's what drew me into the Star Wars universe. I loved watching all his scenes, and they drew my interest. I feel (my character) Wim is like Luke, and I, in turn, am like Wim. It all comes in full circle. Star Wars is so fun for everybody, that's what I love about being in the series, and 'Skeleton Crew' displays that too.

Before you started filming, did Jon Watts or Christopher Ford tell you to study the lore of any specific Star Wars era to prep you?

Honestly, not really, and that's because 'Skeleton Crew' acts as an entry series where you don't have to have any prior Star Wars knowledge to enjoy. They wanted it to be a completely fresh concept. It was something so different that we've never seen in the Star Wars universe: children leading a franchise project. Children bring out certain wide-eyed, starry-eyed wonder to that universe adults may not. It will be fun to watch, and it's inspiring for a lot of people, and anybody can enjoy it. That's what makes 'Skeleton Crew' so special.

How did you get along with Ryan, Kyriana, and Robert? Did you hang out between scenes when you were filming?

We did our little activities with each other before we even started shooting to get to know each other. I would always go over to Ryan's dressing room, and we would listen to Weezer and Gin Blossoms. We loved listening to music together, and we all got along so well. Last night, I went over to Ryan's house, and we laughed about all the memories we made. It was so much fun to work with kids my age because, up until that point, I hadn't done that. We all shared such a unique experience; it will remain with us for the rest of our lives, and that's special.

Before coming in, did you know anything about Jude Law? What was he like, and did you learn anything from being around him?

I have watched a lot of stuff Jude was in before I met him. Before I knew I was cast alongside him, I saw his work in the 'Harry Potter' [franchise prequel 'Fantastic Beasts'] as Dumbledore. I appreciated him as an actor and person. He was so much fun to be around, not to mention so professional and grounded. He was always focused, and I picked up that intensity from him. Being around someone like that was extra helpful. We always would talk about Shakespeare, and how fun it would be to perform it together. I read your article on Jude, and I can tell that Jude is so amazing. He must have been so fun to research [laughs] because even watching him on the monitors was so much fun. And because he's so good and his initial choices are always on point, I would love to work with him again. That would be so much fun.

Was there anything about production that was difficult to get through, like the weather? Was there a particular scene or stunt that stood out to you and took a little longer than expected to execute?

Not really. It went smoothly, I'd say. I wanted more time, but most of it was filmed inside, too, so the weather wasn't an issue. It was smooth, and everyone was so generous, helpful, and giving. The directors made sure when there was an emotional scene everything was kept quiet. The performers got their time to get into the scene, and in character. We've had so many various directors on 'Skeleton Crew,' who were all so amazing. They all brought something so unique to the project and all of them are my mentors now. I learned so much from every one of them. It was fun working with so many different directors because they all brought something new to it, and that was cool.

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, which also stars Tunde Adebimpe, Kerry Condon, Marti Matulis, Jaleel White, Fred Tatasciore, Mike Estes, and Dale Soules and features the voice of Nick Frost, premieres with its first two episodes on December 2nd on Disney+, with new episodes on Tuesdays.

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