Did Guillermo del Toro meet with Star Wars producers over Jabba the Hutt movie?
Altogether now: “OH-HO-HO-HOOO!” (No, that isn’t meant to be a Santa Claus quote.)
Acclaimed writer-director Guillermo del Toro has in years gone by expressed interest in taking the helm on a ‘Star Wars’ spin-off movie centred on iconic bad guy Jabba the Hutt – and now, the filmmaker reveals he has had meetings with top brass at Lucasfilm.
While del Toro does not specify whether a Jabba the Hutt movie was the subject of the conversation, he tells Collider that he has “talked to Kathleen Kennedy [Lucasfilm president] and John Knoll [chief creative officer of FX house Industrial Light and Magic] about ideas” relating to the ‘Star Wars’ universe, which he says has “some characters that are great.”
However, del Toro stresses he’s primarily interested in tackling worlds of his own creation, stating bluntly, “I want to do my sh**. I want to do it first.”
The 52-year old ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ and ‘Pacific Rim’director first discussed his interest in a ‘Jabba the Hutt’ movie with Yahoo! Movies in July 2015, though he stressed his idea was 100% hypothetical: “This is not real, this is me as a fat geek just geeking out and talking about it…
“I would do the sort of ‘Godfather’ saga that Jabba the Hutt had to go through to gain control. One, because it’s the character that looks the most like me, and I like him. I love the idea of a Hutt type of mafia, a very complex coup. I just love the character.”
Introduced in 1983’s ‘Return of the Jedi’ (after being mentioned in the earlier two ‘Star Wars’ movies), Jabba has since appeared in the 1997 ‘Star Wars: A New Hope’ special edition, and briefly in 1999’s ‘Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace’ – neither of which were exactly great fan-pleasing moments, given the character was recreated via less than stellar CGI.
That impromptu pitch may well have just been del Toro “geeking out,” but it seems it may have been enough to get him through Lucasfilm’s door. As to whether or not this means a ‘Jabba the Hutt’ movie may come, with or without del Toro’s involvement: guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
Following on from the success of last year’s ‘Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,’ an as-yet untitled ‘Han Solo’ movie is on the way from directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, due May 2018. A ‘Boba Fett’ solo movie had also been on the cards, but its status is unknown at present following the dismissal of director Josh Trank (‘Fantastic Four’).
Meanwhile, Guillermo del Toro’s next movie, original fantasy drama ‘The Shape of Water,’ is expected in cinemas this November.
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