Ontario Star Wars cosplayer invited to red carpet for premiere of new film

Star Wars fan Dean McInnis of Corunna, Ont. was among the first to see the ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’. CTV's Brent Lale reports.

Star Wars fan and cosplayer Dean McInnis of Corunna, Ont. was among the first to see the yet-to-be-released film ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’.

He was invited by Lucasfilm Ltd. (LFL) to attend the Hollywood premiere of the movie and be on the red carpet in his fan-club approved Din Djarin costume.

“We got to the event and we dressed up and went out on the red carpet,” said McInnis from his home just south of Sarnia.

“We met Pedro Pascal (Din Djarin), Jon Favreau (the director) and all the stars that were in the in the film. They signed our stuff and it was so great. Pedro even signed my Darksaber. Right after that, we de-kitted and they waited for us to come into the theater. We went into the El Capitan (theater) and we watched the movie. It was fantastic.”

McInnis has been a cosplayer since 2019 when he got his first costume. Since then, his collection has exploded with eight more official costumes and a basement full of memorabilia.

It includes talking R2-D2 and BB-8 droids, a speeder bike, figurines as well as movie posters, coins and collectibles.

“I belong to three Star Wars fan clubs,” said McInnis.

“I belong to the Mandalorian Mercs, the 501st Legion, and the Rebel Legion. We do a lot of charity events. We go to children’s hospitals and the money we raise goes to charities like Make-A-Wish and SickKids hospital”.

He walked in the 2021 Macy’s Day Parade in New York City, wearing a First Order Stormtrooper costume. He also appeared in a Coca-Cola commercial.

McInnis loves cosplay because of the friendships and meeting of like-minded people.

“You go to events together, and you get to meet them again and you have lunches with them, and you dress up together and you feed off each other’s, excitement,” he says.

Four of his friends were invited to go along with him.Daniel Schwartze of Cambridge joined him on the red carpet, while Paul Van Dyk of London and Gerald Gyorffy of Cambridge were the fan area.

“It’s a dream come true for any Star Wars fan to go there, but to be that involved and to be that present with all the actors and Disney and LFL bringing us there to do everything; it was so fantastic,” said McInnis.

One of his most memorable moments was watching Favreau draw a Mandalorian and Grogu on a young boy’s helmet right beside him.This film is the first Star Wars movie to hit theatres since The Last Jedi in 2019.

“There’s something for everybody in this new movie,” he said.

“I was smiling for the first hour. I couldn’t get the grin off my face sitting there watching. I couldn’t believe I was there”.

McInnis will make the one-hour drive from Corunna to London, Ont. to join 15 of his fan club friends for the local premiere Thursday night.

“I saw it and I loved it,” added McInnis.

“I recommend people to go see it. It’s an adventure from start to end, and Grogu is the star”.