Star Wars: Jar Jar Binks Actor Teases International Speaking Tour to Celebrate 'The Phantom Menace'

Prior to the release of The Last Jedi, one of the most controversial elements of the Star Wars saga was Jar Jar Binks and his jester-like antics. The character was introduced in 1999's The Phantom Menace, with performer Ahmed Best lending the character his voice and providing a motion-capture performance. To celebrate the character, Best announced he would be going on an international speaking tour about the experience.

Wanting to ensure he could meet as many fans as possible, Best shared with Twitter, "Hey all, I'm thinking of doing a 20-year #TPM international tour to talk about the past 20 years of #JarJarBinks. Is that something people would be interested in? Where would you want to see me? What would you want to know?"

Binks played a prominent role in Phantom Menace, only for his role to be reduced exponentially in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. Whether it was in the actual prequel trilogy or continued in the original trilogy, many of the major characters' fates were detailed, leaving fans to wonder how his political role impacted the rest of his life. The novel Star Wars Aftermath: Empire's End hinted at what became of Binks, which depressed many readers.

Given that Binks essentially helped create the Galactic Empire with his vote, many constituents held the Gungan responsible for the Empire's rise to power. Empire's End, which takes place after the events of Return of the Jedi, featured the appearance of a street performer who used to be a politician acting as a clown on the streets of Naboo in hopes of making a living. Jar Jar wasn't specifically named as the clown, though fans of the franchise knew this was the fate of the divisive character.

The character may have survived through six films, though Best himself wished that George Lucas had found a creative way to kill the character.

"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," Best shared with Star Wars podcaster Jamie Stangroom. "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."

He added, "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."

With Binks' presumed survival, it's always possible he could somehow appear in another film.

Would you be interested in attending Best's tour and his discussion of Jar Jar? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

[H/T Twitter, ahmedbest]