Despite having a considerable fanbase behind him, Boba Fett’s part in the actual Star Wars films doesn’t go much beyond snitching on Han Solo and then standing around looking cool. If Mark Hamill had his way, however, Return of the Jedi could’ve packed one mammoth reveal that would’ve pulled this bounty hunter right into the heart of the saga.
There’s an old story that between the releases of The Empire Strikes Back and its sequel, Hamill was pushing for a twist that would top the “I am your father” bombshell – namely, that underneath Boba’s helmet was none other than Luke’s mother. As it turns out, this popular myth is 100% correct, with the actor confirming as such via Twitter:
“I once suggested it to George as the only way we could top Vader being my father. I envisioned her as a double-agent working clandestinely for the Rebels. SPOILER ALERT: He didn’t like my idea.”
Needless to say, this would’ve been an insanely difficult twist to pull off, not just because Boba is voiced by a man but also because s/he already had a track record of screwing over our heroes pretty badly, both in Empire and in the infamous Star Wars Holiday Special. If you’re doing more to hurt your cause than help it, then you’re probably a lousy double-agent. And so, for better or worse, the Samus Aran twist was rejected, Boba remained a ‘he,’ and Luke’s mother was eventually shown to be Padmé Amidala in the Prequel Trilogy.
Jump to 2018, and with Rey’s parents revealed to be no one important and Kylo Ren looking highly likely to die in Star Wars: Episode IX, it seems that the Skywalker bloodline is nearing its end. As for Boba Fett, with the character’s standalone movie confirmed dead, it looks like his embarrassing fate in Return of the Jedi could be last we see of the green helmet for a while.
