The Mandalorian and Grogu begins playing in U.S. theaters tomorrow afternoon, and as we first reported on SFFGazette.com, a new TV spot and Hot Toys figure reveal our best look yet at Jeremy Allen White's Rotta the Hutt in all his formidable glory.
Before now, the only surviving heir of Jabba the Hutt (as he's described here) has been largely confined to an arena setting. In this latest promo, Rotta is shown fighting some Stormtroopers and letting out a roar, giving us our first taste of what White's voice sounds like as the character.
Hot Toys, meanwhile, has revealed its 1/6th-scale Rotta figure, and—no pun intended—it's quite the beast! Revealing a closer look at his scars, weapons, and neck tattoo, it seems Jabba's son has not had an easy life since we last saw him as a baby in The Clone Wars.
During a recent interview with ScreenRant, Lucasfilm co-President Dave Filoni opened up on bringing Rotta to live-action as an adult in The Mandalorian and Grogu.
"I remember being with Henry Gilroy when he was writing Clone Wars when we first started out, and he pitched this idea of this child Hutt, and I was like, 'Okay, I don't know, maybe sure let's try that,'" he recalled. "And then years later, he comes in, and he's pitching a baby Yoda, and I'm like, 'What is going on where I'm always somehow conveyance for these child characters.'"
"Of all the things, because we talked about so many things, what would be in Star Wars, what could we pick, what could we bring, like you were saying, the Ugnaughts, like take something. I never thought Rotta would come up," Filoni admitted. "I mean, I've often wondered about him, and where he's gone on, but when you were like, 'Hey, I think Rotta, I think there's a thing here.'"
Reviews for the movie have suggested that Rotta has a small but memorable role in this story. The fact that he's dealing with Imperial Remnant Stormtroopers in this latest preview points to him being on the side of the angels, which is quite different from his dear old dad.
In The Mandalorian and Grogu, the evil Empire has fallen, and Imperial warlords remain scattered throughout the galaxy. As the fledgling New Republic works to protect everything the Rebellion fought for, they have enlisted the help of legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and his young apprentice Grogu.
Directed by Jon Favreau, the movie also stars Sigourney Weaver and Jeremy Allen White. It's produced by Jon Favreau, Kathleen Kennedy, Dave Filoni, and Ian Bryce, with music composed by Ludwig Göransson.
The Mandalorian and Grogu arrives in theaters on May 22.