Baby Yoda is everywhere, almost literally. The character introduced in The Mandalorian on Disney+ has become a social media phenomenon, due largely to the fact that it is just so cute. Memes dominate Instagram feeds. Group chats have Baby Yoda flying back and forth. Christmas trees even have the cute little green guy. Now, road signs are starting to pop up and play with the popularity of the mysterious new character that is not actually Yoda. Spotted in Tennessee, a safety warning uses Baby Yoda to catch the attention of drivers on the highway and pass along some guidelines to drivers.
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Spotted in Nashville, Tennessee, a sign controlled by the Tennessee Department of Transportation on Highway 65 reads, “Baby Yoda uses the Force and a car seat,” suggesting that little ones should always be safely strapped in. For those who have not yet watched The Mandalorian, this is a pretty big spoiler, seeing as the first time The Child used the Force it was a big deal. However, it might just be assumed by now, and the sign is very fun and clever, so let’s not throw any shade at the Tennessee Department of Transportation and just applaud them on the fun they’re having with the holiday season.
Check out a photo of the Baby Yoda traffic safety sign in the tweet below!
Disney owns the roads pic.twitter.com/25QTNmfvaI
โ The Brandalorian (@BrandonDavisBD) December 26, 2019
In the past, this same sign in Tennessee has read, “Drinking and driving is the path to the Dark Side,” around the time of previous Star Wars movies being released.
Baby Yoda, nicknamed for his resemblance to centuries-old Jedi Master Yoda known from previously released episodic Star Wars movies, is the breakout character of The Mandalorian. Officially referred to as “The Child” until his real name is revealed, the character has inspired a variety of memes and other viral reactions after making his debut in the closing moments of the premiere episode of The Mandalorian.
“Well, look, the scale of the reaction is probably beyond my expectations by a wide margin,” The Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger told The Hollywood Reporter when attending the Hollywood premiere of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. “That said, the moment I laid eyes on the character, I had a strong feeling the character was going to connect with audiences. It’s just so cute, so interesting, so compelling, in many respects so familiar and yet so new.”
Besides the widely agreed upon cuteness of Baby Yoda, The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau believes the 50-year-old infant has proved so popular because he’s shrouded in mystery:
“We’ll learn more about him over the course of the season,” Favreau previously told THR. “I think what’s great about what George [Lucas] created is that Yoda proper, the character that we grew up watching, was always shrouded in mystery, and that was what made him so archetypal and so mythic. We know who he is based on his behavior and what he stands for, but we don’t know a lot of details about where he comes from or his species. I think that’s why people are so curious about this little one of the same species.”
The Mandalorian releases its season finale Dec. 27 on Disney+.