‘Solo: A Star Wars Story’ Bonus Features Confirm Connection to ‘Star Wars Holiday Special’

Despite Lucasfilm attempting to completely distance itself from the absurd Star Wars Holiday Special that debuted in 1978, a glimpse at the script of Solo: A Star Wars Story on the film’s home video release features a reference to Chewbacca‘s father from the special, Attichitcuk.

During the scene in which Chewbacca formally introduces himself to Han Solo, audiences only heard the Wookiee speak in his native tongue. According to the script, Chewbacca introduced himself as, “Chewbacca, son of Attichitcuck.” The character was first introduced in The Star Wars Holiday Special and had various mentions in multiple Star Wars Expanded Universe tales.

With Star Wars: A New Hope becoming one of the biggest pop culture sensations of the late-’70s, everyone was quick to find ways to cash-in on the property. This led to George Lucas giving the approval for CBS to craft a holiday special focusing on the characters, with stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher all participating.

The narrative of the special focused on Chewbacca’s father, wife, and son all waiting for him to return home for “Life Day” festivities. Chewbacca had apparently been more interested in zipping around the galaxy with Han Solo in the Millennium Falcon than making sure he was with his family for the occasion, with a variety of obstacles preventing him from getting home in time.

The Holiday Special‘s sheer absurdity has prevented Lucasfilm from ever officially releasing it in any capacity, though fans who taped the special live have circulated bootleg copies in the decades since.

Despite Lucasfilm distancing themselves from the special as much as they could in subsequent since its airing, various novels included references to Chewbacca’s family as it was established in the Holiday Special.

When Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012, the official canon of the saga was streamlined to be comprised only of the six live-action films and the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars, effectively erasing any concept of Chewbacca’s family. Not only were the novels relegated to being considered “Legends,” but so were the events of the Holiday Special.

Chewbacca’s father isn’t the first Holiday Special character to have been made canon, as both his wife and son have been mentioned since Disney’s purchase of Lucasfilm. The bartender Ackmena, who was played by Bea Arthur, has also made an official canonical appearance in a Star Wars novel.

Solo: A Star Wars Story is available now on Digital HD and hits Blu-ray and DVD on September 25th.

Do you wish this reference made its way into the film’s release? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

[H/T Reddit, StarWarsLeaks]