Who Is Cal Kestis Modeled After? & Does He Voice Cal?

The world of Star Wars is full of different prominent characters portrayed by actors who have become successful in their own right and are now legends as far as Star Wars fans are concerned. Of course, while the Star Wars Jedi video game series is neither a live-action production nor an animated movie or series, its protagonist was still modeled after an actor who became the face of the entire video game franchise. So, who is Cal Kestis modeled after?

Cal Kestis was modeled after actor Cameron Monaghan, who is also the same person voicing the runaway Jedi character in the Star Wars Jedi video game series. Monaghan made a name for himself in the Shameless series but also voiced Superboy in The Death and Return of Superman.

Cameron Monaghan isn’t necessarily an older actor, but he has been around for a while already. However, his youthful appearance made him the perfect model for Cal Kestis, who we know is only getting older and older with the passing of each installment in the Star Wars Jedi video game series. So, with that said, let’s take a look at this topic in greater detail.

Cal Is Modeled After Cameron Monaghan

The storyline of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Survivor follows the journey of Cal Kestis, who was first introduced as Jedi Padawan on the run from the Empire. In Fallen Order, Cal needed to re-learn everything he learned from his time as a Jedi Padawan to be ready to take on a mission that would help the other Force-sensitive people all over the galaxy. Then, in Survivor, he was now an older Jedi with five years to mature and master the fundamentals of the Force. The older version of Cal took on the Empire as a terrorist that tried to slow down the Imperial supply lines while also taking down smaller bases.

Of course, we all know that the story of Cal Kestis is told through the video game format, which isn’t the most popularly used format in Star Wars. Nevertheless, Cal is a canon character. But while we know he is canon, Cal is unlike other Star Wars characters that were clearly portrayed by actors in the movies and live-action series. He also isn’t like the animated characters in the animated side of Star Wars, as these characters weren’t modeled after real-life people.

While video games aren’t the same as live-action productions, the current video game technology relies a lot on motion capture and modeling CGI-created characters after live-action actors. So, who was Cal Kestis modeled after?

Cal Kestis was modeled after actor Cameron Monaghan. Born in 1993, Monaghan has been around the world of acting since he was ten years old and has appeared in many successful productions over the years. He made a name for himself in the Shameless television series from 2011 to 2021.

Since appearing in Shameless, Cameron Monaghan has appeared in more productions that used his talents. He also appeared in 20 seasons of the Gotham television series as Jerome Valeska before lending his voice to DC as Superboy in The Death and Return of Superman and DC Showcase: Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth! as the titular character.

Cameron Monaghan not only acted as the model for Cal Kestis’ appearance but also motion-captured some of the character’s movements as well. He is also the voice of the runaway Jedi Knight.

Will There Be a Live-Action Cal Kestis?

Of course, because Cal Kestis looks almost exactly the same as Cameron Monaghan, conversations regarding the possibility of him portraying the runaway Jedi in a live-action series or movie have surfaced. And the conversations started when the Obi-Wan Kenobi series was released as this storyline took place on 9 BBY, the same year of setting as Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.

In speaking about the growth of the Star Wars franchise on Disney+, Monaghan said that he was always a big fan of the franchise and is excited to see what Lucasfilm has in store for his character and the future of the Star Wars storyline:

“It’s amazing. I grew up loving Star Wars as a kid. I mean, I guess everybody did, right? You would go to the movie theaters and talk with friends: “What do you think they’re gonna do next week? Where do you think they’re gonna go?” There were always new, exciting facets of this universe being introduced, and now we’re getting to see that explored through many forms of media. There’s some really cool stuff being done on Disney+, and it’s not only one of the coolest things happening in Star Wars, but one of the coolest things happening in television at the moment.”

If Monaghan were to portray Cal Kestis as a live-action character, the most probable series would be the Obi-Wan Kenobi storyline because they both occur during similar timelines in the Star Wars lore. Of course, Cal might appear in the Mando-verse storylines if it is confirmed that he survives the Imperial era. But if he dies before the Empire’s fall, it is unlikely that Cal would appear in any production that takes place after the Imperial era.

But while it may be true that Monaghan was excited about what has been happening in the live-action side of Star Wars on Disney+, he also said something that might indicate the possibility that there won’t be a live-action counterpart of Cal Kestis appearing anytime soon.

“It’s been really amazing doing it within the video game space because I think games are vastly under-explored and underutilized, and are only really getting their due in this moment—people are looking at games and seeing they’re incredible and moving and significant. So, my priority right now is to make sure we have a satisfying arc within the games.”

Basically, Monaghan was saying that Cal’s story arc will be wrapped up within the video game series, which will likely see a third game that will conclude the entire Kestis storyline. As such, we might not see him in a live-action Star Wars production in the future. Still, the possibility of him making cameo appearances in future Star Wars productions is still out there. Let’s just hope that it becomes a reality.