If you were to tell me a week ago that Emmy Award winner Jeremy Allen White had been tapped for an upcoming Star Wars project, I probably would’ve believed you. What I still can’t seem to fully digest, however, is that the upper echelon at Lucasfilm picked him, of all people, to voice a Hutt.
Star Wars, you’re crazy for this. Casting announcements are finally rolling out for director Jon Favreau’s The Mandalorian & Grogu, which will serve as the galaxy far, far away’s first feature film since 2019’s Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker, a.k.a. the stand in for that much-disputed fourth season of The Mandalorian—or so we think. The blockbuster is set to arrive in theaters in May 2026, and will see Pedro Pascal reprising his role as the titular bounty hunter-turned-daddy.
Given The Mandalorian‘s streaming success, it’s not surprising that Disney picked this to be Star Wars’ big comeback. Among the known ensemble, which will likely see the return of Katee Sackhoff’s Bo-Katan Kryze and possibly Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka Tano, is franchise newcomer Sigourney Weaver, who’s set to appear in The Mandalorian & Grogu in an undisclosed role. Her inclusion proves that Lucasfilm is pulling out all the stops—and A-list talent—for their triumphant return to theaters, and this latest casting announcement is no exception.
Jeremy Allen White will play an oft-forgotten Star Wars: The Clone Wars character, apparently
Following in the footsteps of his The Bear co-star Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who had a short but memorable turn in season 1 of Andor, Jeremy Allen White will make his official Star Wars debut in The Mandalorian & Grogu—and I wouldn’t have seen this one coming if it hit me in the face with a rerepulsor train. Per Variety, White will voice Jabba the Hutt’s son, Rotta the Hutt (affectionally nicknamed “Stinky” by Ahsoka), who was first introduced to audiences in the 2008 animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie.
The report didn’t offer much in the way of specifics, but it’s safe to assume that Rotta, the heir to his family’s legendary crime organization, wants his throne back. Dave Filoni’s MandoVerse (i.e. The Mandalorian and Disney+ spinoffs like The Book of Boba Fett) has already established that the fall of the Galactic Empire left a power vacuum in the Outer Rim. So even though Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison) usurped Bib Fortuna (Matthew Wood) and became the new Daimyo of Mos Espa, I wouldn’t be surprised to see that something’s awry on Tatooine by the time The Mandalorian & Grogu rolls around.
So everyone is confused about Jeremy Allen White’s The Mandalorian & Grogu casting announcement, right?
If you’ve been waiting to see a prestige drama actor like White lend his talents to playing a slimy, CGI pile of phlegm, this one’s for you. He’s got the range, honey. The worst part? There are whispers that Rotta will be…buff. Still, I’m going to go out of my way to assume that this certainly wasn’t on anyone’s 2024 bingo card. As one X (Twitter) user wrote in response to White’s new Star Wars gig: “CRAZIEST SENTENCE EVER WJAHSHHSHDHDHHD I WISH THIS WASN’T REAL.”
2025 and 2025 are shaping up to be busy years for White, who on top of reprising his role for season 4 of The Bear, is also set to play The Boss in 20th Century Studios’ Bruce Springsteen biopic, Deliver Me from Nowhere. Needless to say, his violent left turn to Star Wars is giving me whiplash. But dare I say his performance might be…good? After all, we already know that White is an extremely capable actor, and seeing him take on a new type of role—one that pushes his skills—could be really fun, if nothing else.
If this is a sick joke or some sort of misdirection cooked up by Lucasfilm to build hype for The Mandalorian & Grogu, bravo. I guess it does fall in line with White picking roles about characters with dysfunctional families though, right?! You couldn’t get any more dysfunctional than the Hutts. For now, this casting update seems very real, and I, for one, am so, so curious to see how they’re going to pull this off—and if a buff Hutt is going to dip into full uncanny valley territory. ‘Cause so far, all signs are pointing to absolutely 100% yes.
Published: Dec 13, 2024 06:16 am