Introduced on the big screen in 1980's The Empire Strikes Back, masked bounty hunter Boba Fett has long been a fan favourite supporting character in the Star Wars universe.
Helmeted throughout his first two big screen appearances, he was always something of an enigma. Which only made it all the more awesome when it was revealed in 2002's Attack of the Clones that Boba Fett was Māori.
In that film, Māori actor Temuera Morrison played Jango Fett, from whom we learned Boba Fett (and indeed the entire imperial army) was cloned.
It brought Rotorua swagger to the most iconic supporting bad-ass in Star Wars history.
And now, after years of rumours, solid, tangible plans for a solo Boba Fett movie have been announced, with James Mangold (Logan) at the helm.
If this character is going to grow up to be Tem, it stands to reason that he should be played as a young man by a Māori actor. Star Wars creator George Lucas even went back and dubbed Tem's voice into the Boba scenes in Empire and Jedi, so the character's Māoriness is entirely canonical.
Kiwi/Fijian filmmaker Toa Fraser (No. 2, Into The Badlands) agrees, recently tweeting two very enticing suggestions directly to Mangold: Xavier Horan and Te Kohe Kuhaka, both of whom kicked serious ass in Fraser's 2014 film The Dead Lands.
Here we will discuss what those two guys, and several other potential Bobas, could bring to the character, and attempt to assess their odds of securing the role.
The Rugged Boba Fett: Xavier Horan
Actor Xavier Horana. Photo / Getty
A big factor working in Horan's favour is that he looks like a young Temuera Morrison. He demonstrated considerable combat bad-assery in The Dead Lands, and furthered proved his action film credentials in Fraser's latest movie Six Days. The laconic charm he shows on Westside could be well-applied to a more rough'n'tumble Boba Fett.
Odds: 25:1
The Suave Boba Fett: Te Kohe Tuhaka
Te Kohe Tuhaka. Photo / Getty
Tuhaka was positively chilling as Wirepa, the principal antagonist in The Dead Lands, where he displayed leading man charisma that has yet to be fully exploited on screen. He is possessed of chisled, matinee-idol looks which could make for an interesting lady-killer take on Boba Fett. This aspect of the character was briefly hinted at in Return of the Jedi, when Boba is glimpsed sweet-talking a sexy blue alien in Jabba's palace.
Kiwi actor Daniel Logan was fourteen when he played the kid version of Boba Fett in Attack of the Clones. Now 30, he's spent the last few years waging a social media campaign to return to the role, a campaign that has understandably ramped up recently.
He's active in Star Wars fandom, and has a lot of support online. Although he remains something of an unproven quantity when it comes to grown-up acting roles, he notably voiced the character of Boba Fett in the Clone Wars animated series, so he's obviously on Lucasfilm's radar.
Odds: 10:1
The Old Boba Fett: Temuera Morrison
Actor Temuera Morrison. Photo / Getty
Although Boba seemingly bought the big one in Return of the Jedi, in light of the unexpected big screen resurrection of [redacted] in Solo, it's not much of stretch to imagine we could see an older, post-Sarlac Pitt Boba Fett in a solo Boba Fett movie, in which case he would HAVE to be played by Temuera Morrison.
Odds: 5:1
The Funny Boba Fett: Troy Kingi
Actor Troy Kingi. Photo / Getty
Like Tuhaka and Horan, Kingi is another graduate of Māori TV's hilarious Find Me a Māori Bride, which should be renamed Find Me A Boba Fett. Kingi was Hunt for the Wilderpeople's secret weapon and it's exciting to picture him bringing something of a Taika Waititi-esque vibe to a stumbling Boba Fett still discovering his inner bad-ass.
