Disney digitally removes the accidental cameo of The Mandalorian crew member

In keeping with the bad things happening in 2020, Disney digitally removed a lone crew member who accidentally appeared in the background of a recent Mandalorian episode.

The crew member, who the Internet has lovingly dubbed the “Jeans Guy”, appeared at 6:54 pm in season 2, episode 4. With his back flat against the wall, the crew member has not been involved for a long time, but they made an impact on Star Wars fans everywhere. People have even made mock action figure models based on the crew member! You can’t buy that kind of love. The Verge contacted Disney for digital cancellation.

After revisiting the scene, however, the crew member is nowhere to be found, something I feared would happen. The beauty of digital editing technology is that it is possible to work on shows and movies in homes around the world at a time when it is impossible to be in a shared office space. The downside is that the accidental gaffes we’ve come to love are erased, lost forever in the digital wavelengths of time. Not to mention Disney has a history in this field: remember the butt coverup Splash?

Image: Disney

There is a longer essay on this situation about the importance of physical media and how annoying and depressing it is that digitization makes everything impermanent. Studios and networks can come in and change something forever, and in our current age of streaming, it’s not like there are DVDs out there that people can keep and use to prove to their future children that “Jeans Guy” was real. I could make a whole rant about how the beauty of imperfections is what fans fall in love with because it’s a reminder that our favorite movies and TV shows come from a group of ordinary people who only try their best.

For another day, though. Today is a day to remember the lone crew member who became one of The Mandalorian ‘The most loved characters, even if for a short period of time.