‘Star Wars’ Motion Capture/Voice Actor Ahmed Best Recalls The Hatred For His Jar Jar Binks Character
deadline.comJar Jar Binks. Invoke the name to any hardcore Star Wars fan and then step back to see the explosion. No one is neutral. The actor who brought the goofy Gungan character to life, Ahmed Best, had a number of highs and lows attached to his role.
Opinions on the character ran hot after his Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace debut 25 years ago. Best spoke to People about the role.
Not all of his memories were fond. “Everybody came for me,” he recalled. “I’m the first person to do this kind of (motion capture) work, but I was also the first Black person, Black man.” Best said he was “ostracized” from doing similar motion-capture work in Hollywood because of the widespread criticism his character received at the time.
He was touring with the Stomp dance troupe in 1997 when a casting director offered an audition at Lucasfilm’s Skywalker Ranch.
Read more on deadline.com
