Last week's episode of The Mandalorian featured the debut — on the show at least, if not the galaxy — of Jedi knight Kelleran Beq. And it also marked the return of a Star Wars veteran to the fold in the shape of Ahmed Best.
Beq, who actually originated in Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge, a game show created for StarWarsKids.com and YouTube. But The Mandalorian offered a chance for the character to get some truly heroic action in a flashback to how he helped save Grogu from Clone Troopers during Order 66.
Best who brought Jar Jar Binks to life across the three prequels (and Clone Wars), famously dealt with critical fans and those lambasting the character. So you can understand his concerns about returning.
“Honestly, I had to think about it," he told Starwars.com. "I’ve been in the Star Wars world for such a long time and my story is such a rollercoaster ride of emotions. So coming back to Star Wars wasn’t an easy decision for me. It wasn’t something I could have immediately said yes to. I did have to marinate over it for a bit. I mean, I was excited. I don’t think people really understand how much I care about Star Wars. Like, I really care. I really, really care about the storytelling, about the mythology, about the fans. I really want Star Wars to deliver, and if I become an obstacle to that, then I shouldn’t be in it. I don’t want to be bigger than the story. I don’t want to be bigger than the mythology. I want to contribute, I want to add to it. So it took me a minute."
Free of the performance capture duds he sported playing Jar Jar, Best was able to bring his own martial arts and stunts skills to the character, pulling off much of what we see him do on screen, including a chance to use a lightsaber. "The lightsaber of it all was really exciting for me," he says. "I’ve always, always, always wanted to do a lightsaber fight. And even in this one, it’s just like, one-tenth of one percent