A human actor was on set to play the original Jabba the Hutt in the first Star Wars movie, but neither the actor nor the scene made the final cut in 1977. The notorious slug-like gangster is one of the key villains in the Star Wars movies, causing trouble for the galaxy’s heroes from the Clone Wars era through the rise of the Galactic Empire. While Jabba’s most prominent onscreen role in the series was in Return of the Jedi, the character was originally supposed to appear in the first Star Wars film.
Jabba was originally supposed to appear in A New Hope, where he would have crossed paths with Han Solo. Ther were many deleted scenes in A New Hope, Jabba’s being one of them, but he was restored for the 1997 Special Edition. While audiences of the late 1990s and beyond saw Han talking with a CGI Jabba the Hutt, the original scene featured a human actor named Declan Mulholland. Jabba has always been one of the most recognizable aliens in Star Wars, so Mulholland’s casting caused many viewers to wonder why Jabba was originally a human.
Jabba’s Final Look Wasn’t Achievable In 1977 But Was Fixed Later
There were limits to 1970s technology
The production of Star Wars was famously troubled. Lucas’ vision for his far-away galaxy exceeded the technological limits of the era, and much of what he planned was hampered by time and money. Jabba the Hutt’s scene fell victim to this, largely because it was too ambitious. The plan was to use Declan Mulholland as a stand-in for a non-human Jabba the Hutt and then use a matte process to cover his performance with a new creature for the finished film. Unfortunately, Lucas lacked the time, funds, and ability to pull the scene off, and so it was abandoned.
However, by the late 1990s, technology had finally caught up to Lucas’ vision for Star Wars. When Lucas began preparing the Special Edition of the first film, he dusted off the Jabba scene and gave it a CGI makeover. Using the updated slug-like design from Return of the Jedi, a computer-generated model was inserted into the sequence, covering up Mulholland’s original Jabba completely. While future editions would include a more realistic CGI Jabba, the scene has remained a part of A New Hope ever since. Mulholland’s performance is now entirely obscured.
How Was The Real Jabba Created For Return Of The Jedi?
The design was truly impressive
George Lucas had originally planned to introduce Jabba the Hutt as setup for sequels he didn’t know whether he’d ever be able to make. Given that’s the case, it’s unsurprising to find Jabba making an actual appearance in Return of the Jedi – playing a major role as the being holding Han Solo captive. Lucas’ original Jabba ideas had actually been much less ambitious than the finished version.
The Jabba of Return of the Jedi was a massive puppet design, made of 2,000 pounds of latex, wires, fiberglass, and gaffer tape. The Jabba body contained two people, each of whom were responsible for controlling one of his arms. Puppeteer Toby Philpott played the left arm, head, tongue, and part of the torso; speaking to the Telegraph in 2023, remembering this as one of his best paydays. Unfortunately, he didn’t set aside enough for the tax bill, and wound up homeless.
There’s a sad irony to Philpott’s tale, because in his interview with the Telegraph he argued that his job has essentially been erased because of CGI. The Yoda of Return of the Jedi has at least remained, but the original Yoda of A New Hope was erased by CGI. It seems almost like an illustration of Philpott’s complaint.
How Muholland Reprised His Jabba Look In Time Bandits
However, Declan Mulholland’s version of Jabba would end up appearing on the big screen again. Mulholland would go on to appear in Terry Gilliam’s 1981 film Time Bandits in a minor role as one of a group of robbers. During his appearance, Mulholland wore a very similar outfit to the scenes he filmed as Jabba, with a fur-covered vest and grungy clothing underneath. The costume in Time Bandits is a little fancier than the one in the A New Hope deleted scene, but there’s an undeniable resemblance to the original version of the powerful Jabba the Hutt.
It’s possible the similarity was intended as an inside joke by Gilliam or Mulholland, although very few among Time Bandits‘ audience would have understood it. It’s far more likely that the similarity was a coincidence. Either way, it’s a fun and (possibly) accidental tribute to a lost part of Star Wars history.
