Disney’s ownership ofStar Warshas been controversial, if nothing else. It produced a lot of different content that feels more referential than engaging. One of the worst examples of using nostalgia in place of anything worthwhile wasThe Book of Boba Fett. That show broke the goodwill Disney built withThe Mandalorian. The character’s continued presence in the franchise could present a problem, but the only person free from blame is the star behind the character, Temuera Morrison.
Though celebrity performers are usually box-office draws, a film’s creative success or failure rarely hinges on the actors. They’re critically important, but directors, writers, and a thousand behind-the-scenes artists tend to be the ones who run the operation. This consistent paradigm shows throughin popular nerd programming. From Marvel toDoctor Who, the faces of the franchises rarely cause many of the problems that earn criticism. They’ll be in the YouTube thumbnails and article headings, but stars rarely decide to make boring, self-referential schlock.
Temuera Morrison Won’t Be Back forThe Mandalorian & Grogu
Temuera Morrison joined theStar Warsfranchise in 2002, when he portrayed Jango Fett inAttack of the Clones. He’s solid in the role, even while delivering lackluster dialogue from the same script thatmade Hayden Christensen proclaim the line, “I don’t like sand.” He first provided the voice for Boba Fett in the 2004Empire Strikes BackDVD Special Edition re-release. Since then, Morrison has been all over the franchise. He’s in several video games, but he left for a few years after the late 2000s. Noted voice actor Dee Bradley Baker played all the Clone Troopers in the long-runningClone Warsseries. Morrison slowly reintroduced himself in EA’sBattlefrontgames before finally fully embodying Boba Fett for the first time in 2020. Morrison played Boba Fett inThe Mandalorian. He followed that debut with a solo series,The Book of Boba Fett. Unfortunately, in an interview at FAN EXPO Chicago, he explained that he hadn’t been tapped to return for the upcomingMandalorian & Grogumovie.Screen Rant’s Liz Declan recordedthis quote:
I’m still waiting for a phone call, to be quite honest… I think we’re just put on the shelf for a little bit. Maybe we come off the shelf later.
That Screen Rant article chooses to implythatThe Book of Boba Fettnegatively impacted the reputation of the character and the performer. While he didn’t specifically say that, many onlookers have taken that perspective.
The Book of Boba Fettis probably the worstStar Warsshow under Disney’s ownership. It’s not the worst series ever made or anything, but it cracks under the nightmarishweight of Disney’s corporate expectations. The premise was flawed, dragging a familiar character back into the spotlight for no apparent reason other than nostalgia. That was the potential fate ofThe Mandalorian, which became considerably better when it introduced original characters and followed them through new adventures. The show also forgets what it’s about near the halfway point.The Book of Boba Fett’s biggest sin is only partially related to the show. For no real reason, it contains a massive plot detail fromThe Mandalorian. A lot of fans skippedBoba Fett, only to jump intoMandalorianseason 3 and discover that the most fateful decision of the season 2 finale wasundone in an unrelated show.TheBook of Boba Fettwas dull, uninspired, and far too reliant on callbacks. The same is true ofObi-Wan Kenobi, but its popularity broke every potential measurement. Temuera Morrison is one of very few elements ofThe Book of Boba Fettthat worked.
Temuera Morrison Was the Best Part of the Show
The draw of the show should have been watching Morrison portray a character he’s become very comfortable with.There is some of that. The series unpacks Boba Fett’s escape from his grim fate from the original trilogy. It depicts him as a rising crime lord, fighting a selection of other unsavory characters as he reaches toward the throne he once served. There could have been something worth exploring in its premise if they were willing to explore Boba Fett as if he were a new character.It worked for Cassian Andor, and he had more than five lines in his first appearance. Morrison was on a tight leash that wouldn’t let him do much of note.The Book of Boba Fettdidn’t want to tell a compelling story, so it didn’t manage that lofty goal.
Anyone could explain the many problems withThe Book of Boba Fett, but Morrison’s quiet, nuanced, and long-established performance wouldn’t make the list. OnlyDisney could see a long history of issueswith their corporate policies and immediately blamed the face on the poster. No one knows whether fans will see Morrison put on his Mandalorian armor again, but there’s no reason to keep him out of it.The Book of Boba Fettwasn’t worth opening, but that was never the man behind the helmet’s fault.
