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Some people know how to make entrances. Some people just walk out and fumble through their presentations. And then there’s Janina Gavankar, who walked onto the EA Play stage with a full contingent of Stormtroopers and proceeded to show everyone how it’s done.
Gavankar plays Inferno Squad Commander Iden Versio in Star Wars: Battlefront 2 and, not only is that the most Star Wars name one could possibly imagine, she’s obviously having a blast in the role. And the world noticed.
#E32017 outfit goals. @Janina #EAplay pic.twitter.com/SAkTaNxaNo
— Machinima (@Machinima) June 10, 2017
.@janina certainly had the best entrance of E3 so far
— Danielle Riendeau (@Danielleri) June 10, 2017
No joke, I'd like to see @Janina host EA next year. Whole thing.
— Alexander Sliwinski (@Sliwinski) June 10, 2017
It goes on like that for a long time. The newsroom at Polygon was also raving about her performance. Gavankar has a long history in Hollywood, from The League to True Blood and Sleepy Hollow, and even runs a website that ... well, we’re not sure what it does. There’s a lot going on there.
Why was the presentation so good? Gavankar provided some really good evidence that these shows need to de-emphasize the “influencers” who are paid to be enthusiastic about the games on streams and focus on the actors and developers who seem honestly enthusiastic about the game and its community.
Gavankar owned that stage, and presented the game with gusto and confidence. Everyone else at the show, save for maybe Josef Fares’ spirited announcement of A Way Out, paled in comparison.
Gavanker was a great break from the flow of YouTubers, slick corporate dudes and developers who seemed very uncomfortable on the stage. EA has found gold in Gavankar, and we can only hope she hosts everything possible next year.
