Mon Mothma is a

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...

character Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

in the ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

'' franchise, primarily portrayed by actress

Genevieve O'Reilly Genevieve O'Reilly (born 6 January 1977) is an Irish actress. She is known for her work in the ''Star Wars'' franchise as Mon Mothma, having portrayed the character in ''Revenge of the Sith'', ''Rogue One'', and the Disney+ series '' Andor'', ...

. Introduced as the leader of the Rebel Alliance in '' Star Wars: Return of the Jedi'' (1983), portrayed by

Caroline Blakiston Caroline Georgiana Blakiston (born 13 February 1933) is an English actress. She is best known in her native United Kingdom for her role in the television comedy series ''Brass'', to international audiences as Mon Mothma in the ''Star Wars'' film ...

, Mothma has become a prominent character in subsequent

prequel A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work. The term " ...

media, including '' The Clone Wars'' (2008–2014), and the films '' Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith'' (2005) and ''

Rogue One ''Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'' (or simply ''Rogue One'') is a 2016 American epic space opera film directed by Gareth Edwards. The screenplay by Chris Weitz and Tony Gilroy is from a story by John Knoll and Gary Whitta. It was produced by Luc ...

'' (2016), and television series ''Rebels'' (2014–2018) and ''Andor'' (2022–present).

Appearances

Film

''Return of the Jedi'' (1983)

The first onscreen appearance of Mon Mothma was in ''

Return of the Jedi ''Return of the Jedi'' (also known as ''Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi'' is a 1983 American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand. The screenplay is by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas from a story by Lucas, who ...

'' in 1983, portrayed for the only time by

. In this film, she explains to the rebels the plan to stop the Death Star.

''Revenge of the Sith'' (2005)

A young Mothma, portrayed for the first time by

, appears in '' Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith'' in a silent

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly eit ...

. In a

deleted scene A deleted scene is footage that has been removed from the final version of a film or television show. There are various reasons why these scenes are deleted, which include time constraints, relevance, quality or a dropped story thread. A similar o ...

, in which she plays a larger role, Senator Mothma secretly meets with Senator

Bail Organa This incomplete list of characters from the '' Star Wars'' franchise contains only those which are considered part of the official ''Star Wars'' canon, as of the changes made by Lucasfilm in April 2014. Following its acquisition by The Walt D ...

Alderaan Alderaan () is a fictional planet featured in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. It is blue-green in appearance, depicted as a terrestrial planet with humanoid inhabitants, and characterized by a peaceful culture. It is the home planet of Princess Lei ...

and Senator

Padmé Amidala Padmé Amidala Naberrie is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise, appearing in the prequel trilogy portrayed by Natalie Portman. First indirectly mentioned in ''Return of the Jedi'', she is introduced in ''The Phantom Menace'' as ...

Naboo Naboo is a fictional planet in the '' Star Wars'' universe. A bountiful world with a mostly green terrain, the planet was the homeworld of two independent societies: the native Gungans, who dwelt in underwater cities, and the human Naboo, who l ...

during the last days of the

Galactic Republic The Galactic Republic, often referred to as simply the Republic, is a fictional galactic polity depicted in the ''Star Wars'' universe, where it existed prior to the establishment of the Galactic Empire. The Republic is most prominently por ...

. The group, known as the Delegation of 2000, discuss Chancellor Palpatine's growing authoritarianism and how to counter it in what would be early seeds of the

Rebellion Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

against the

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

''Rogue One'' (2016)

'' marks Genevieve O'Reilly's first on-screen appearance as Mon Mothma after her scene in ''Revenge of the Sith'' was removed from the final cut of the film, reprising the role after over a decade. Mothma tasks Rebel spy

Cassian Andor Cassian Andor is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise, primarily portrayed by actor Diego Luna. Introduced in the feature film ''Rogue One'' (2016) as a supporting character, he is the protagonist of the ongoing prequel televisio ...

with finding

Galen Erso This incomplete list of characters from the ''Star Wars'' franchise contains only those which are considered part of the official ''Star Wars'' canon, as of the changes made by Lucasfilm in April 2014. Following its acquisition by The Walt Dis ...

, the Imperial scientist who designed the

Death Star The Death Star is a fictional space station and Weapon of mass destruction, superweapon featured in the ''Star Wars'' Space opera, space-opera franchise. Constructed by the autocratic Galactic Empire (Star Wars), Galactic Empire, the Death Star ...

Television

''The Clone Wars'' (2010–2014)

''Rebels'' (2017)

Mothma appears in several episodes in the animated series ''

Star Wars Rebels ''Star Wars Rebels'' is an American 3D animation, 3D animated science fiction on television, science fiction television series produced by Lucasfilm Animation and set in the ''Star Wars'' universe. It takes place over a decade after ''Episode ...

'', with O'Reilly reprising her role. While a member of the Imperial Senate, Mothma makes a speech where she publicly denounces Emperor Palpatine for the Empire's massacre of the Ghormans. The speech causes Mothma to leave the Imperial Senate and flee after being wanted by the Empire. She is then forced to publicly become the leader of the Rebel Alliance, calling for various Rebel cells across the galaxy to converge.

''Andor'' (2022–present)

Novels

''Lost Stars'' (2015)

''Aftermath'' (2015)

Mothma was featured in

Chuck Wendig Charles David Wendig (born April 22, 1976) is an American author, comic book writer, screenwriter, and blogger. He is best known for his online blog Terribleminds, for his 2015 ''Star Wars'' novel trilogy ''Aftermath'', the first book of which d ...

's novel ''

Aftermath Aftermath may refer to: Companies * Aftermath (comics), an imprint of Devil's Due Publishing * Aftermath Entertainment, an American record label founded by Dr. Dre * Aftermath Media, an American multimedia company * Aftermath Services, an Americ ...

''. After the Rebel Alliance's victory at the Battle of Endor and the fall of the Empire's leadership, Mothma leads the formation of the democratic New Republic on her homeworld of Chandrila. Mothma took up the role of Chancellor of the New Republic. Seeking to not repeat the mistake of the old Galactic Republic's militarization, she proposed radical measures such as the New Republic to undertake demilitarization by 90%.

Reception

O'Reilly's portrayal of Mon Mothma has received a universally positive critical reception, while Blakiston's initial

cameo role A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly eit ...

as the character has become an

internet meme An Internet meme, commonly known simply as a meme ( ), is an idea, behavior, style, or image that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms. What is considered a meme may vary across different communities on the Internet ...

References

External links

* * Andor (TV series) characters Female characters in film Fictional chancellors Fictional diplomats Fictional military strategists Fictional senators Fictional republicans Film characters introduced in 1983 Star Wars: The Clone Wars characters Star Wars Anthology characters Star Wars Rebels characters Tales of the Jedi (TV series) characters {{Star-Wars-stub