When Grogu (AKA “Baby Yoda”) first hit the scene, alongside Pedro Pascal’s stoic Mandalorian Din Djarin, in The Mandalorian on November 12, 2019, he was an instant hit with both longtime Star Wars fans and with those who had never even seen a single Star Wars movie.
The show is now gearing up for its third season in February 2023, after setting up some epic storylines in both The Mandalorian Season 2 and spinoff series, The Book of Boba Fett.
Djarin had previously made his return in Bryce Dallas Howard’s aptly titled, “Chapter 5: The Return of the Mandalorian.”
Now, as anticipation for Season 3 mounts, Gremlins (1984) director Joe Dante has spoken out — and it turns out he isn’t nearly as big a fan of Grogu as everyone else.
“I think the longevity of [the Gremlins films] is really key to this one character [Mogwai, Gizmo], who is essentially like a baby. Which brings me, of course, to the subject of Baby Yoda, who is completely stolen and is just out-and-out copied. Shamelessly, I would think.”
Grogu’s appearance in certainly in keeping with what one would expect from a younger version of Yoda’s (and Yaddle’s) species, but he does bear a resemblance to Gizmo as well. However, it’s worth noting that ESB released four years before Gremlins, so George Lucas’s vision for Yoda was not taken from the Warner Bros. film.
As one recent article pointed out, however, Grogu and Gizmo do have one major, undeniable similarity — their merchandising power:
Back in the ’80s, the adorable Gizmo inspired a similar merchandising trend, becoming a worldwide sensation, even among those unfamiliar with the Gremlins movies. The original film earned a follow-up film in 1990 with Gremlins 2: The New Batch, with the franchise now headed to the small screen with the animated Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai on HBO Max.
What do you think about Joe Dante’s Star Wars comments?
34
Credit: Lucasfilm
