User blog comment:Player Gammer/PG Proposal: Galen Erso/@comment-39032584-20191203014909

Yeah, sure. He was basically forced to build that weapon, and even then, he implemented a subtle weakness so it could be destroyed, which is exactly what made it possible for the Rebellion to do what they did when they stopped and destroyed it in A  New Hope. That makes him pretty heroic in my opinion especially considering he's a fairly minor character. It also certainly helps that he not only one of the main reasons Jyn was inspired to get her act together and contribute to a heroic cause (which is, again, what made what happened in the first movie, which Rogue One prequels, possible), but he also cared enough about the scientists who acted as his subordinates that he tried really hard to save their lives by making it as clear as possible that they had no part in his act of rebellion before they were executed by Orson Krennic.

One other thing I can't help mentioning is that on a meta note, this was definitely a case of "playing against type" role for Mads Mikkelsen, since he normally plays villains. So there's definitely some irony surrounding the fact that he plays such a blatantly heroic character in the franchise that's known for having its share of some pretty vile villains