Phineas and Ferb meet the Sith-inator in 'Star Wars' special
Phineas and Ferb are about to travel to Tatooine and beyond with the help of actor Simon Pegg and "MythBusters" Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman. The show's creators talk to Crave.
Disney boy geniuses Phineas and Ferb meet Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, R2-D2, and C-3PO in the upcoming "Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars," premiering Saturday.
In the special, Phineas and Ferb are living just one moisture farm over from Luke Skywalker on the planet of Tatooine when R2-D2 and the Death Star plans accidentally fall into their speeder. With the fate of the galaxy thrust on their shoulders, they hire pilot Isabella, Han Solo's rival, to help them return the plans to the Rebel Alliance. Complicating matters, low-ranking Stormtrooper Candace is intent on busting the Rebels and chases them across the galaxy in hopes of intercepting the Death Star plans.
Meanwhile, intergalactic chaos erupts on the Death Star when Perry the Rebelpus is trapped in carbonite while trying to stop Darthenshmirtz from using his new "Sith-inator." The saga takes a turn for the worse when Ferb is accidentally caught in the crossfire of the "Sith-inator," changing him into a full-fledged Sith and leading to an epic first-time battle between the brothers.
The animated special guest-stars Simon Pegg (as C-3PO and Candace's commanding officer) and Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman from "MythBusters" as various members of the Empire. The cast also includes Vincent Martella as Phineas, Ashley Tisdale as Stormtrooper Candace, Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Ferb, Caroline Rhea as mom Linda Flynn-Fletcher, and Richard O'Brien as dad Lawrence Fletcher.
"Phineas and Ferb" creators/executive producers Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh, who make cameos as themselves in the special, say a galaxy full of Sith Lords, Jedi, and droids seemed like a perfect fit for Phineas and Ferb.
"They're just dreamers anyway and that's what Luke Skywalker was," Povenmire told Crave. "So they actually have a different arc than Luke did in the movie. They end up on a similar path but their arc is that they never want to leave Tatooine because it's for them. It has two suns, it's summer all year around. They're having a great time and just exploring the entire planet. But they get taken off the planet by the circumstances beyond their control, much like Luke does."
Casting actor Simon Pegg -- who also had a brief guest-starring role in the hit animated series "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" -- felt like the perfect fit considering the actor's own love for droids, Wookiees, and Skywalkers.
"I heard a bit that Pegg did with Nick Frost, also awesome, where they were doing a 'Star Wars' spoof, and his impression of C-3PO is genius," Marsh told Crave. "Since he did the show for us before, we just called him and asked him 'Would you like to do C-3PO' and he was like 'Yes!' So we also got another little part for him to do as well that was just a comedy bit between Candace and her commanding officer. He plays her commanding officer."
Of "MythBusters" hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, Povenmire added, "They are like adult versions of Phineas and Ferb in the real world."
The special packs lots of inside "Star Wars" jokes and references, including a jab at the well-known fan debate of who shot first in the cantina scene in "A New Hope."
Marsh's favorite scene in the special, in fact, takes place in the cantina. "Just because I love that we got to play in that same little playground, where Han first met Luke," Marsh told Crave. "We got to have Phineas and Ferb meet Isabella and just being in that little place is great."
Because Marsh and Povenmire love obscure "Star Wars" references, fans will get to see some Easter eggs in the show.
"We have a lot of little tiny things that were like 'I wonder if anyone is going to get this?' We spelled things out in Aurebesh, which is the 'Star Wars' alphabet," Povenmire told Crave. "Somebody is going to pause it and get their Aurebesh dictionary out probably. We have a lot of stuff for the fans."
A preview of "Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars" is now available via the Disney Channel Watch app, and the special premieres Saturday at 9 p.m. on the Disney Channel. The full episode will re-air on August 4 at 7:30 p.m. on sister channel Disney XD as part of a "Star Wars"-themed programming block, followed by an extended look at "Star Wars Rebels," which launches this fall.