Every Star Wars film is known for introducing a ton of new creatures into the canon, creating a galaxy of unique lifeforms. Fans already have been struck with porg fever, though they’ll get to see a lot more new creatures when Star Wars: The Last Jedi premieres in theaters.
Special effects artist Neal Scanlan helped create the new creatures in the movie, and he recently offered some insight into the design process for porgs, Caretakers, and more.
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Scanlan revealed to Empire that the porg seen in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon actually strikes up a bond with Chewbacca, which played into the creature’s unique look.
“That porg in particular shows some very Wookiee traits in the way he’s colored; his patterning is very similar to Chewie’s,” said Scanlan.
He offered some insight into the relation between the porgs and the Caretakers, the two dominant races of Ahch-To, revealing just how involved the the thought process is when it comes to designing new Star Wars creatures.
“With Ahch-To, it felt like the only creatures that would ever exist on this island were those indigenous to it, where very few other species and DNA would have reached them,” Scanlan said. “So they’re an extrapolation from the porgs and have bird-like feet, but they’re a further developed race.”
Shifting focus to Crait, fans also raved over the briefly seen “crystal foxes,” shown running into a Resistance base as the blast doors shut. Scanlan explained how these characters came out, further alluding to the rich mineral deposits that were mined during the Rebellion’s campaign against the Empire.
“The theory is [the crystal foxes] fed off this planet for so long that their fur has become crystalline. They’ve taken on the very surface of the planet they live on,” Scanlan said.
Finally, Scanlan teased a confrontation between BB-8 and his evil First Order counterpart, BB-9E aka BB-Hate.
“There was this one scene in particular where BB-8 is in disguise and has to try and make his way without being recognized,” Scanlan said. “It just seemed so threatening that his doppelgรคnger would be the very one that may or may not discover him.”
Fans will get to see more new creatures and the inevitable droid fight when Star Wars: The Last Jedi premieres in theaters on December 15.
