Lucasfilm Banned Boba Fett From One ‘Star Wars’ Movie, Character “Off Limits”

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the mandalorian chapter 9 concept art boba fett

Credit: Lucasfilm

There are few Star Wars characters more iconic than Boba Fett. The legendary bounty hunter first appeared in animated form in the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special (1978) and then joined the existing Star Wars canon in Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980).

star wars a new hope special edition (l-r) han solo, jabba the hutt, and boba fett
Credit: Lucasfilm

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He subsequently made what is, perhaps, his most famous original trilogy appearance in the Sarlacc pit scene in Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983). Jango Fett’s son even makes a cameo in George Lucas’s special edition of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977).

And, now, a more recent Star Wars movie writer has shared that the character was supposed to make an appearance in a much newer addition to the Star Wars story, but was “off limits” to filmmakers.

han solo and chewbacca in solo a star wars story
Credit: Lucasfilm

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Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) co-writer Jonathan Kasdan recently spoke to The New York Times and shared that his team wanted to bring Fett into their script, which tells the origin story of young Han Solo (Alden Ehrenreich) and his Wookiee copilot Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo) long before they were traversing the galaxy to aid Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), and the Rebellion.

solo a star wars story cast (l-r) alden ehrenrich as han solo, donald glover as lando calrissian, joonas suotamo as chewbacca, emilia clarke as qi'ra, and droid l3-37
Credit: Lucasfilm

Kasdan said:

“Boba was always off limits because he was in development elsewhere.”

book of boba fett temuera morrison
Credit: Lucasfilm

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The “somewhere else” was likely Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni’s “Mand0-Verse.” Although The Mandalorian — which introduced the Star Wars fandom and the world at large to beskar-clad bounty hunter Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Grogu (AKA “Baby Yoda”) — didn’t debut until the Disney+ streaming service launched on November 12, 2019, work on the series was likely already underway much earlier.

(l-r) fennec shand, boba fett, and din djarin in the mandalorian chapter 14
Credit: Lucasfilm

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Fett, of course, made his triumphant return to the Star Wars universe in Robert Rodriguez’s The Mandalorian Season 2, Episode 6 (“Chapter 14: The Tragedy”), in which he and Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) teamed up with Djarin following the Battle of Tython and the traumatic kidnapping of Grogu by Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) and his Dark Trooper droids.

Now, Fett and Shand are getting their very own spinoff series, The Book of Boba Fett, which is set to debut on Wednesday, December 29, 2021.

book of boba fett temuera morrison
Credit: Lucasfilm

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Intriguingly enough, Kasdan and the Solo crew may yet get to see their characters and Fett interact as the bounty hunter becomes a crime lord in his own right after taking Jabba the Hutt’s former throne from Bib Fortuna (Michael Carter) in The Mandalorian Season 2 finale episode’s post credits scene.

Numerous reports indicate that Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke) — Solo’s first love on Corellia — and her Crimson Dawn crime syndicate will be the major antagonist, along with an intriguing bedfellow in the form of Cad Bane (Corey Burton), when The Book of Boba Fett premieres.

emilia clarke (left) and alden ehrenreich (right) in solo a star wars story
Credit: Lucasfilm

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Although The Book of Boba Fett takes place about five years after Return of the Jedi, and approximately 20 years after Solo, it will be interesting to see an older, more hardened version of Qi’ra who has clearly risen in Crimson Dawn’s ranks, perhaps even taking the place of Dryden Vos (Paul Bettany) as one of Maul’s (Ray Park) most trusted associates.

darth maul cameo in solo a star wars story
Credit: Lucasfilm

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At this time, appearances in The Book of Boba Fett might be Solo fans’ best hope to see characters from the film again. Director Ron Howard — whose daughter Bryce Dallas Howard (The Mandalorian, Jurassic World) is directing an episode in the Star Wars series — has said a Solo sequel is not likely.

book of boba fett temuera morrison
Credit: Lucasfilm

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Star Wars fans are also expecting cameos from a number of other popular Star Wars characters when Book of Boba premieres, such as GroguPascal’s Djarin, Timothy Olyphant’s Marshal Cobb Vanth, and, of course, a young Han Solo — CGI, of course — but, Rodriguez, Favreau, and their team unsurprisingly have yet to confirm any details regarding special appearances by Star Wars fan-favorites.

What do you think about Jonathan Kasdan, Ron Howard, and their team not being able to use Boba Fett?

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