Star Wars Actor Ahmed Best Asked George Lucas To Kill Off Jar Jar Binks

When it comes to Star Wars characters, few are as universally loathed as Jar Jar Binks. But despite all of the fan derision for the bumbling bombad general, the character never received an epic death in the canon, instead becoming a literal clown in the novel Aftermath: Empire's End.

Jar Jar actor Ahmed Best recently spoke with Star Wars podcaster Jamie Stangroom about his unhappiness with the character's arc, revealing that he asked George Lucas to kill off the Gungan at one point.

"I always complained to George when I realized that [Revenge of the] Sith was pretty much not going to have Jar Jar in it and they were moving very very far from me," said Best, "I always complained to George that I didn't get a good death! i wanted to really be just hacked to pieces in some kind of way…and George wouldn't do it."

Despite Jar Jar's instrumental role in the Emperor's rise to power, after the negative response to the character in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Lucasfilm backed off on including him in future stories.

"I always said that Jar Jar's fate was too open ended, I would have loved to have closed it in some way. I think everybody wants some kind of Jar Jar closure to happen, including me," Best said.

In Star Wars Aftermath: Empire's End by Chuck Windig, a character named Mapo sees the Gungan performing as a street clown on the streets of Naboo, barely affording to make ends meet. Jar Jar reveals to Mapo that his life has been difficult ever since the events of Revenge of the Sith, when he motioned to grant Chancellor Palpatine emergency powers in the Republic, precipitating the rise of the Empire.

Best himself has spoken about his erasure in film history, specifically the rise of motion capture performances. Best's acting in the prequel trilogy began a trend in Hollywood that has continued to this day and has since become a cornerstone of Andy Serkis' career. Though Serkis is considered a pioneer in medium, Best's contributions in Star Wars have gone largely ignored.

The rest of the podcast is worth a listen, but it's a little heartbreaking to learn how the portrayal of Jar Jar has adversely affected Best's career.