You were expecting to see the big wookie weren’t you? Well it was impressive enough that it might have made Peter Mayhew smile since the original Chewbacca actor was the icon behind the beloved character for so long and helped to bring him into the spotlight when he answered a casting call so long ago. Sadly Peter passed away in April of 2019 and as you can imagine he was mourned by many since his massive height and character helped to create the mighty Chewbacca in a time when wookie’s weren’t yet known and their customary roars and growls were still waiting to be synthesized. Ringing in the new year in this manner though feels accurate and acceptable since Rise of Skywalker possibly made a lot of people suffer chest palpitations for a moment when it appeared that Chewbacca had finally perished, thus nearly completing the passing of the old guard since Han, Leia, and Luke had already passed on. Thankfully he got to see the movie through to the end and at the side of Lando Calrissian no less, as an ignoble death for Chewbacca just shouldn’t be in the cards anyway. This is the type of character that either ends on a peaceful note or in battle as is befitting the type of fighter he’s been for so long.
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If ever there was a time to start thinking about whether or not to create a series or a movie based entirely around Chewbacca and his people it would be now since the technology is there, the interest is certainly there, and the opportunity is at the moment right there for the taking. So far it doesn’t sound as though anyone has even chirped that this would be an idea but with the Mouse House one can never tell until the ideas are allowed to trickle down to the people and begin their way around the rumor mill where they’ll churn for months before something finally comes of it or a denial is finally heard. Out of all the Star Wars characters remaining however it does feel like the right time for Chewbacca to finally be given the spotlight in a big way since his story has been told in the books and in the comics but never on the big screen. The world he comes from and his people are interesting enough and have a long history with the Empire since the Imperials subjugated Chewbacca’s world horribly following the Clone Wars, turning his people into slaves and treating them like beasts. Finding out more about the wookies would be great for Star Wars fans since it would open up the galaxy just a little more considering that wookies have had a hand in galactic history as well and have even been seen as Jedi in the past. It’s a rarity to be sure but it’s something that might open up other avenues of thought that might be enticing enough to follow.
Maybe the Auld Lang Syne rendition with the Chewbacca roar is somehow prophetic, perhaps it’s alluding to something on the horizon, or not. But all the same it does get the creative juices flowing and were I a Star Wars novelist I’d already be pushing an idea to the higher-ups as to introduce Chewbacca and a trip to his homeworld of Kashyyyk in order to star describing the lush forest world in a way that would gather readers together and build their hopes that they might one day see something on the big or small screen concerning the iconic wookie and his people. Seriously, this really needs to happen given that we’ve already enjoyed Chewbacca as a backup and main character for so long, it’s time to see just what his homeworld has to offer and what it was like for him growing up before he took on the galaxy, met Han, and started off on adventures that nearly got him killed several times. If you take into account how old he was when he met Han, and how old he must have been during the Clone Wars, then Chewbacca has lived a long and very eventful existence. It’d be fun to figure out just what he’s done and why he did leave his homeworl after a while since there’s a story in print at this point but there’s no telling if Disney is going to keep it as canon or relegate it to the rest of the EU before cherry-picking it to death eventually.
When all is said and done the idea to bring Chewbacca a little further into the foreground is a good idea, which means that it will likely be kicked around for a few years at the very least if anyone ever gets wind of it. Until then we can still enjoy the big wookie and his many exploits thanks to the wonders of movies.
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