Star Wars: Boba Fett Concept Artist Doesn't Think Bounty Hunter Should Have Removed His Helmet
With 2002's Star Wars: Attack of the Clones establishing that Boba Fett was a clone of his father Jango Fett, played by Temuera Morrison, it confirmed what the original-trilogy bounty hunter looked like under his helmet. With The Mandalorian and now Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett, the character spends plenty of time not wearing his helmet, but one of the original concept artists for the character, Joe Johnston, recently detailed how he doesn't think the figure ever should have made such a reveal. It's also worth noting, however, that Fett was never meant to survive past Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, so Johnston's reactions are at least someone influenced by the figure only ever being designed to be a background player. New episodes of Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett debut on Disney+ every Wednesday.
"I never would have shown his face. I would never have had an actor underneath where he takes the helmet off and you see who it is," Johnston recently explained to The New York Times. "I think that eliminates a lot of the mystery. Before that helmet comes off, he can be anybody."
Fett's journey over the decades has been a fascinating one, which includes a number of changes to his overall trajectory. While Johnston might have helped design Fett, the heavily armored character was originally intended to be a super stormtrooper, with Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back aiming to enlist hundreds of figures wearing the armor. When this became too costly an endeavor, the design was repurposed for the bounty hunter character.
While Empire Strikes Back is known for being Fett's live-action debut, his official introduction came in 1978's The Star Wars Holiday Special, starring in an animated sequence with Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Chewbacca. Following The Empire Strikes Back, Fett's skills as a bounty hunter and his intimidating armor immediately made him a fan-favorite, though he would meet an untimely death early on in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.
Despite his apparent death, a series of Star Wars comic books would go on to explain how he escaped from the Sarlacc, allowing him to have continued adventures across the galaxy. However, Disney's purchase of Lucasfilm in 2012 relegated those adventures to the Star Wars Legends corner of the franchise, deeming them non-canonical. The Season 2 premiere of The Mandalorian then revealed that Boba Fett was alive and well on Tatooine, with The Book of Boba Fett since explaining the canonical journey he experienced to survive the massive beast.
New episodes of Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett debut on Disney+ every Wednesday.
Do you think the character should have kept his helmet on? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!