While “The Book of Boba Fett” begins today on Disney +, return on the sudden disappearance of the character in “Return of the Jedi”. A scriptwriting choice that George Lucas admits to having subsequently regretted.
The first act of Return of the Jedi is drawing to a close. After defying the slimy Jabba the Hutt, Luke Skywalker and Han Solo are doomed to be thrown into the bowels of the monstrous Sarlacc, a gigantic stomach of the sands that is believed to digest them for over … 1000 years.
As the time for the big leap approaches and the tension builds, the Jedi nods to his trusty R2-D2, grabs his precious lightsaber on the fly, and begins the fight against Jabba’s minions.
In the epic battle that follows – a scene every fan remembers from the first hour – an important character in the saga unexpectedly dies. At least, that’s what we see at first as a spectator.
The bounty hunter Boba Fett, briefly introduced in The Empire Strikes Back, indeed ends up in the throat of the terrible Sarlacc. After seeing his blaster slashed by Luke’s saber and attempting to tie up the Jedi, he falls victim to his own jet-pack, unintentionally activated by a movement from Han Solo, and ends his soaring flight into the monster’s throat.
Lucasfilm Ltd.
A rather abrupt ending for a secondary character who had nevertheless carved out a place of choice in the hearts of fans, as George Lucas confides in the audio commentary of the film:
“For Boba Fett’s death, if I had known he was going to become such a popular character, I probably would have made it a little more exciting”, regrets the filmmaker. “Boba Fett was just one of the underlings, a bounty hunter and villain. But he became everyone’s favorite. Even with such a small role, he had a really big presence.”
Aware of this somewhat wasted potential, George Lucas nevertheless decided to reinstate the character, as a child, in his prelogy, and even to link him to the clone soldiers of the Republic via his father Jango Fett. An initiative that made him regret his initial decision even more:
Lucasfilm Ltd.
“Now that his story has been told in the first trilogy, it seems like an even bigger mistake not to emphasize his defeat more. Because most people don’t believe he is dead. I had thought to add a shot where he came out of the hole, but I found it just didn’t fit, in the end. “
Fortunately for George Lucas and for all fans of the character, Boba Fett is now back, and alive and well.
As we saw in season 2 of The Mandalorian (after it was mentioned often in the Extended Universe), the bounty hunter finally got away with it. How exactly? We may learn it in The Book of Boba Fett, broadcast on Disney + today.
(Re) discover the trailer for the new series …
