Ahmed Best, voice actor of Jar Jar Binks, struggled with the backlash he faced from the character’s negative reaction from the Star Wars prequels.
Jar Jar Binks was not a favorite character from the prequels. In fact, his character was panned and belittled every step of the way.
In a recent tweet, the actor who played Jar Jar Binks said he considered suicide after backlash he received from the movies. It was sad comment, but at least there was a positive note to it as well.
Ahmed Best wrote on Twitter: “20 years next year I faced a media backlash that still affects my career today. This was the place I almost ended my life. It’s still hard to talk about. I survived and not his little guy is my gift for survival. Would this be a good story for my solo show? Lemme know.”
When Jar Jar Binks showed up on screen during The Phantom Menace, his odd voice, phrasing, and appearance, and seemingly bizarre choices led to Star Wars fans spurning the character – along with the rest of the prequels. There were other issues with it, but Jar Jar Binks was universally panned and became a poster child for everything wrong with the prequels.
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The sad thing is not much has changed in almost 20 years. Best received so much criticism, it seemed his career suffered a bit, and he contemplated suicide. No matter how much a character is disliked, the person portraying that character should never have to feel such a terrible backlash.
Now, we have seen similar issues with Kelly Marie Tran scrubbing her social media because of the negativity sent in her direction.
For Best, he has performed in a number of movies and shows since then. He is also considering a speaking tour about Jar Jar Binks, according to a recent tweet. It seems Best is ready to take the negativity head on and talk about his experiences over the last 20 years.
How do you feel about Best’s tweet? Would you go see his speaking tour?