Disney+(NEW YORK) — (SPOILER ALERT) “I woke up to such sweet messages and it means the world!!” said Bryce Dallas Howard, who thanked fans for “staying up late” and watching Friday’s new episode of The Mandalorian, which she directed — and during which she also included an homage to her father Ron Howard’s Oscar-winning 1995 film, Apollo 13.
As the episode begins, the title character’s ship, the Razorcrest, is heavily damaged as it makes a dramatic atmospheric entry. A sharp-eyed fan tweeted a side-by-side comparison of Razorcrest‘s re-entry and that of the crippled NASA command capsule’s re-entry in Apollo 13, both ships shaking violently as they nearly burn up on their way to landing.
Bryce confirmed via Twitter it was indeed a deliberate shot-for-shot homage to her father’s based-on-real-life space film.
“Nice catch!! 100% correct,” Bryce tweeted the fan, who noted, “Like father, like daughter.”
Friday’s episode of The Mandalorian, titled “The Heiress,” is Howard’s second directing turn on the series; she also previously directed “Sanctuary,” the well-received fourth chapter from the first season of the Emmy-winning Disney+ show, set in the Star Wars universe.
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By Stephen Iervolino
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