50 Roles for 50 Actors: Dream casting the Star Wars saga

Recasting the Star Wars saga: Jar Jar Binks 

Stories about Jar Jar Binks circa the time The Phantom Menace opened in theaters are well-known. To make a long and often vulgar story short, the fans didn’t like him. He was accused of being too goofy, pandering, and even racist. People who had grown up on the original trilogy thought the presence of a purely comedic character dumbed things too far down. Coincidentally or not, his presence was vastly reduced in the following two films.

History has been kinder to the character (it would pretty much have to be, considering how hated he was after his debut), as the kids who saw Jar Jar on the big screen during their formative years grew old enough to write their own think-pieces defending him.

Still, he remains a distraction to this day, and while taking him out of the equation wouldn’t magically morph The Phantom Menace into a perfect movie, it might put some of the focus back on the principal characters. Rethinking his role might also result in the comedy being spread out judiciously among the cast, rather than put on the shoulders of a single character who wasn’t able to bear the weight.

And that’s an almost total recast of the Star Wars saga. Do you agree with the choices? Do you (and I think this is far more likely) disagree? Who would you cast if you had the chance? Let us know.