Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen talk to ET about returning for the latest 'Star Wars' spinoff.
Over 40 years after the character became a fan favorite upon appearing in The Empire Strikes Back, Boba Fett is finally at the center of his own series, The Book of Boba Fett, which is now streaming on Disney+. The latest Star Wars spinoff sees Temuera Morrison, who originated the role of Jango Fett, the Mandalorian that Boba is cloned from, in Attack of the Clones, continuing the bounty hunter’s legacy.
The new series, which jumps back and forth through time, shows not only how Boba survived his presumed death in Return of the Jedi but how he’s staking his claim on Tatooine’s crime scene following Jabba the Hutt’s demise.
“I’m still pinching myself and still really, in a way, can’t believe it. But I’m really excited and just very honored and very blessed to be part of this whole series,” Morrison says of being invited back to the franchise, this time teaming up with executive producers Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Robert Rodriguez, Kathleen Kennedy and Colin Wilson.
According to Morrison, the series represents a second coming for the character, who is going through a “rebirth.” “He’s stripping away the layers and we’re finding a little bit more about what makes him tick,” the 61-year-old New Zealand actor tells ET, adding that he’s “had a near death experience, almost being buried in the sand alive. Again, getting to know a new tribe, being accepted and being accepted into a family environment.”
That tribe is a clan of Tusken Raiders that Boba has endeared himself to over the course of the first two, action-packed episodes. After saving a Tusken child and helping them fend off an attack from a rival syndicate, Boba eventually becomes accepted as one of their own. And this is notably a different, helmet-less way of life that is far different from the strict code followed by Mandalorians.
“He’s changing his ways. He’s a little more open,” Morrison continues, adding that helping him along his journey is fellow survivor Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen), a mercenary and assassin first introduced in season 1 of The Mandalorian who now serves as Boba’s loyal lieutenant as they navigate the Galaxy’s underworld.
“The series allows us to explore that void that we knew little of because he wasn’t seen that much in those earlier sagas. So now, it’s all about revealing the real Boba. And he wants to lead this organization and this arena with respect,” he says, explaining that Boba wants to lead with “a little bit more diplomacy,” even if it seems to rub others the wrong way.
But the new style of running things is also because “we’re not that 100 percent familiar with it all. And it’s sort of like learning to walk again, a little bit trying to figure out what will work and what won’t work,” Wen says, teasing that “old habits die hard.”
She adds, “Fennec still believes that the quicker way is with fear. Not with respect.”
That said, the 58-year-old actress is just happy to see her character miraculously survive her own premature death and be brought back for this series. “It’s kind of fantastic because Fennec was never in any of the previous Star Wars projects… She’s a fresh character. And I feel like I was able to create and give birth to this character,” Wen says. “I know this fandom has an incredibly strong opinion and passion for anything Star Wars. So, the acceptance and love that Fennec Shand has received is tremendous. I’m blown away by it.”
She adds, “And to be resurrected and partnered up with the legendary Boba Fett and having our own series, it’s like, ‘What is happening? What is going on?’”
New episodes of The Book of Boba Fett premiere Wednesdays on Disney+.
--Reporting by Will Marfuggi.
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