Boba Fett is one of the most popular characters from the original Star Wars trilogy. Kids wanted to dress up as Boba Fett for Halloween, toys were selling like crazy – and the guy only had four lines during his entire time in the films. So, why is Boba Fett so popular?
Boba Fett became popular even before he premiered on the big screen. The action figures before The Empire Strikes Back played into the mystery about Boba. When we saw him in the movie – a mysterious character that Vader addresses directly – it only made him even cooler.
Boba has a devil-may-care personality and that old Western bounty hunter vibe. He’s so badass that Vader has to tell him not to disintegrate people. And then, he speaks very few words while being an extremely skilled fighter with a mysterious backstory, allowing you to imagine who he was and what he could do yourself. Let’s dive into all the aspects of Boba’s popularity.
The Toys
You might be surprised, but it all started with toys. Pardon, action figures – the nerds will kill me if I call them toys. Before The Empire Strikes Back came out, there was a huge campaign advertising the movie. Among the action figures of the well-known characters that appeared on the shelves, such as Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, and others – there was this one new character nobody knew anything about, called Boba Fett.
He looked like such a badass with that awesome armor and T-shaped visor on his helmet, donning a damaged suit and a rifle – the kids instantly fell in love with him.
Still, he was a mystery, but it worked like a charm – it allowed people to imagine and think about who he is and what he does themselves, making Boba Fett popular before they even saw him on the big screen. And then, the movie came out and just built on the mystery.
The Mystery
The Empire Strikes Back, and we see Boba Fett for the first time. He’s a member of a group consisting of six galaxy-best bounty hunters that Darth Vader assembled to do a job for him. However, Boba Fett is the only one of them he addresses directly, saying the words: “No disintegration.”
Boba only answers with a passive-aggressive “as you wish.” And the people go bonkers. Who is this guy who you need to instruct not to disintegrate people specifically? Why is he the only person ever not intimidated when Darth Vader’s presence?
He walks like a boss, talks very little, and gets the job done. He only has four lines in the entire movie, and two of those lines are talking back to Darth Vader. And Vader LETS HIM talk back. That’s how much respect the notorious Dark Lord has for Boba Fett. And then, the movie ends.
The fans are left with even more mystery and an even more badass guy that has the respect of the most badass guy ever to appear on the big screen. He speaks only four lines, adding to the mystery about the character, and it lets the people’s imagination go wild.
Boba doesn’t speak at all in the next movie and remains a badass who shows another part of his personality – he’s righteous and does what he does for the bounty. It’s a job to Fett, nothing personal. The fans were pissed about his silly “death” that was completely out of character, but nothing could change all the facts mentioned above.
It didn’t break the mystery, and Boba Fett remained one of the most badass non-users of the Force in the galaxy.
The Backstory
People who grew up with the original trilogy didn’t enjoy Boba Fett’s backstory from the prequel trilogy, as they felt it diminished the character in every way. Some said it was a weak way for Lucas to include Boba in the movies to capitalize on the character’s popularity.
However, other fans found it great, as it gave Boba Fett a more human, relatable note. You can finally understand how he became the cold-blooded bounty hunter he was in the original trilogy, and you feel for him.
In the backstory, we learn that Boba Fett is actually a clone of Jango Fett, the galaxy’s best bounty hunter at the time. He raised Boba as a son but got decapitated by a Jedi, Mace Windu, right before little Boba’s eyes. Boba vowed to continue his father’s bounty-hunting legacy, took his armor, repainted it, and became the infamous Boba Fett.
Although many old-school fans might disagree, I loved the backstory because it changed Boba from being this merciless robot mercenary to a guy whose horrible life drove him to become like that.
The Personality
Now we have the mystery somewhat disappear after learning Boba’s backstory. Still, he remains a fan-favorite character. Why, and how? Well, it’s quite simple.
Boba Fett’s personality is so cool, composed, and focused. He’s not affected by Darth Vader’s presence at all despite being only a human with no particular superpowers. The respect everybody has for Boba is incredible, and the guy goes around saying nothing, just doing his job – any job you put before him.
The awesomeness of a regular guy being so cool and incredibly strong made people love Boba Fett, and they still do, especially after his role in the second season of The Mandalorian.
The Skills
Finally, the last reason why Boba Fett is so popular is his skills. Despite being a Force non-user, Boba Fett is regarded as the galaxy’s best bounty hunter. Nothing can stop him from getting the job done, except his jetpack activating accidentally and him falling into a Sarlacc pit.
The guy can fight, shoot, fly a jetpack, pilot a starship, and do any job you want him to do. If you want something done, you call Boba, and he’ll deliver.
When you piece all that together, you get an incredibly popular character that the people can relate to, which isn’t common for any character fighting on the bad guys’ side.