Loungefly Exclusive Star Wars Jar Jar Binks Double Strap Shoulder Bag

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In the Wars … Ahmed Best and Jake Lloyd shooting a scene from The Phantom Menace. Photograph: Photo 12/Alamy It’s 1999 and there hasn’t been a Star Wars movie for 15 years (the Ewok telemovies don’t count). The fandom is ravenous and the Episode I: The Phantom Menace hype machine is in full swing. There’s more anticipation riding on the first chapter of George Lucas’ new Star Wars trilogy than any movie ever made. Not to mention the mammoth numbers of promotional tie-ins and merchandise - the likes of which had never ever been seen before or since. Name drop ‘Jar Jar Binks’ around the Average Kyle and they’ll likely respond with a series of expletives. For two decades, the Jar Jar consensus is that he's nothing more than a fool, a symbol of the worst instincts of George Lucas, a pop-cultural punching bag responsible for almost single-handedly tainting the first third of the Skywalker Saga. Jar Jar, played by Ahmed Best, was one of the most heavily marketed characters before The Phantom Menace’s release, and it’s easy to see why. He’s a funny looking goober that appeals to kids.

So, surely the next logical step going forward is for Lucasfilm and the Star Wars community to fully embrace their misunderstood hero? Surely - surely - such an important player in Galactic history must be ripe for re-examination and content purposes? It really felt good,” says Best. “As an artist, I lost my confidence for so many years, but The Mandalorian gave me that affirmation of ‘You were always doing the right thing … It wasn’t you.’” A new hope … Ahmed Best and Dylan Marron (right) recording The Redemption of Jar Jar Binks. Photograph: Evan PerkinsI mean, who better to talk about personal failure that’s lead to devastating, generation-spanning, galaxy-wide effects over a hard blue milk or two at a local cantina than Obi-Wan and Jar Jar, maybe over a hard blue milk or two at a local cantina? And when better to hear it talked about than now, when the fan rage has subsided and new era of Star Wars fans are ready to assess him on merit? Lucas was no stranger to employing a wide array of archetypes in his saga: the simple farm boy unaware of his destiny, the wise old wizard, the roguish pirate. At some point, the tragic clown was bound to work its way into the Far, Far Away Galaxy.

Design: Choose a design that showcases your love for the “Star Wars” franchise and the Jar Jar Binks character. Sure, many of those characters have earned their entry in the decorated halls of Wookiepedia - but have any of them ever put forward a motion to grant an evil tyrant emergency powers, effectively cancelling democracy and plunging an entire galaxy into a generations-long cycle of violence and enslavement at the hands of The Empire while simultaneously changing the way VFX-based characters are made? Loading He turned up, walked through a faux-Victorian mansion filled with display cases containing original lightsabers, and was asked to try out for a role in new Star Wars prequel The Phantom Menace – which involved acting like a salamander. He got the part as Jar Jar Binks’s body – the basis for the CGI animations that formed the character – only to talk the production into giving him a spoken role, using a voice he’d previously invented to entertain his young cousins. Soon, he was on set with Hollywood megastars, driving around with George Lucas – who became almost a mentor to him – and filming a role that effectively invented motion capture. Well, there’s nothing on the horizon and while Best insists he’s not a part of Obi-Wan Kenobi, we have been misdirected before.The press started reporting on the online hatred, driving it to new heights. Best’s phone number was leaked online, and his answering machine overflowed with death threats. He returned to Stomp and became reluctant to even leave his New York apartment. “It was terrible,” says Best. “It was the lowest I’ve been in my life.”