In the wake of director Josh Trank leaving the second standalone Star Wars anthology film, we learned that the plot revolves around fan favorite bounty hunter Boba Fett, and is described as an origin story. One of the most intriguing elements about the character has always been his mystery, and his general lack of screen time and dialogue only enhanced this. George Lucas, however, pulled back the curtain a bit in the prequels, shedding light on some of his backstory (now we know what he looks like under that badass mask).
This move took some of the luster off of Boba Fett, making him an actual character rather than a kind of harrowing, monolithic evil (then again, so did that scream as he falls into the Sarlacc pit). He’ll have to be a real character to carry an entire movie—it’s hard to have a movie without one—and this is also going to indelibly alter how we look at him throughout the rest of the Star Wars saga. Whoever winds up in the director’s chair, they’re going to have to strike a balance of what drew people to the character in the first place, while portraying him as an actual person. With all of this in mind, and since this is happening whether we like it or not, we’ve put together a list of things we want from a standalone Boba Fett movie.
Don't Spend Too Much Time On His Childhood
We know this is an "origin story," but between Attack of the Clones and the subsequent Clone Wars animated series, his childhood has already been covered in enough depth that any more will likely be overkill. We know he’s the non-modified spawn of Jango Fett, who formed the genetic basis for the Republic’s manufactured Clone Army. He’s a sadistic little bastard—surprise, surprise—but what’s we want to see is more of how becomes the Boba Fett we meet in The Empire Strikes Back, the grim, sparse, damn near mute badass that’s like a sci-fi version of a stoic western character. A traumatic childhood that leads a character down a dark path has been done to death in movies, and we’ve all already seen it in this particular case, so if this has to happen, let’s move onto a time we haven’t already seen.
Show Him Get Into Bounty Hunting
Bounty hunting, no matter what galaxy or reality you inhabit, is inherently a dramatic profession, one that comes with a ton of built-in hazards to contend with. It also seems like a job that you wind up in rather than one you actively pursue (do lots of people just start off thinking, "I should get into bounty hunting?"), and there are bound to be stories there. Boba Fett picked some of it up from dear old dad, and in Clone Wars we see him in the early stages of taking up the trade, but as with any potentially hazardous occupation, there is going to be a lot to learn. Watching him go through the paces, learning the ins and outs, the dos and don’ts, could be very illuminating on both a story and character level. We know he has the temperament for bounty hunting, but does he have an aptitude? Is he a natural, or is it something he struggles with?
Why He Customizes His Armor
After Jango Fett’s death, one of the only things young Boba Fett has is his armor, which becomes an iconic part of the bounty hunter’s appearance. But his wardrobe changes over time. At one point in the Expanded Universe it’s resized by a couple of Jabba the Hutt’s employees, and eventually he repaints it, covering up his father’s blue and adding the green scheme that is so identified with the character. Exploring this choice adds some layers and depth to his characterization. For all intents and purposes, Boba, a clone, is Jango, so why make the change? This says a lot about him, the relationship he developed with his father, how he changes after his death, and sets him apart from the rest of the mindless clones that share his DNA. This doesn’t have to be a big part of the movie, and probably shouldn’t be, but, if the story covers any sizeable span of time, showing the evolution of his armor brings in a different, potentially interesting dimension.
There Has To Be A Strong Antagonist
You don’t get to be a notorious intergalactic bounty hunter by being a nice guy and without making enemies, and someone needs to challenge him. Over the course of his career, we know that Boba Fett has a close working relationship with Jabba the Hutt, he comes into contact with Darth Vader, and occasionally teams up with other bounty hunters (in the comics, he actually marries one named Sintas Vel, though a love story would likely feel forced and weird). But what’s the main conflict going to be? Just tracing his life from one event to the next would make this feel like a character biography on Wikipedia, there has to be more, some antagonist, and one worthy of facing off with one of the most popular characters in Star Wars. This raises a bigger question about this movie: is this actually an origin story, one that follows him over a wide swath of time, or does it show one single adventure in the life of Boba Fett?
Show Him Hunt Jedi
This one really depends on the timeframe of the story. Boba Fett’s antagonism towards the Jedi is well known. One of them, Mace Windu, did kill his father, and it would be cool to see him hunting down the lightsaber wielders. In the Expanded Universe, he ultimately, thought unsuccessfully, goes after Mace Windu, so it’s plausible that he could look for vengeance through other avenues. This won’t really work if the story is set in the original trilogy era, as there aren’t all that many Jedi left to hunt, and most of those are in hiding. However, it appears this is going to be set earlier, and if this takes place around when Order 66 comes down, Boba Fett could have a field day helping to hunt the Jedi to near extinction. Hell, perhaps he’s so driven by revenge that he goes after Darkside Jedi as well if that’s all he can get his hands on, he is, after all, not a guy prone to choosing sides.
