When a film has drawn the adoration of viewers for as many decades as The Empire Strikes Back, even the smallest, most inconsequential of details have the potential to evolve into popular in-jokes. Such is the case with Wilrow Hood and his “ice cream maker,” whose bucket-like accessory could be making its long-awaited comeback in The Mandalorian.
Writer Jon Favreau has recently been posting photos of props from the upcoming Star Wars TV series to his Instagram, and one of them looks like it could well be the same item that Wilrow is briefly seen carrying in the 1980 movie. It’s unclear whether the ice cream maker could play a significant role in the live action show, but given the item’s reputation, it could easily serve as little more than an Easter Egg for the fans.
Another prop that Favreau has exhibited online is the rifle that we only partially glimpsed in a previously released image. Now that we have a better look the Mandalorian’s two-pronged weapon, fans have pointed out that it bears a striking resemblance to the tool that Boba Fett carried when he made his debut in 1978’s The Star Wars Holiday Special.
The reveal likely lends a little more credence to the currently circulating theory that the main character of The Mandalorian is wearing the very same outfit once donned by the famed bounty hunter, who may or may not have met his end in the events of Return of the Jedi. That’s just a theory for now, but at the rate that these set photos are coming our way, there could well be more clues out there, and perhaps even a few more nods to some of the more niche-y chapters in Star Wars history.
