In a surprise cameo that nobody in a galaxy far, far away saw coming, Jar Jar Binks actor Ahmed Best returned to the “Star Wars” universe in Wednesday’s episode of “The Mandalorian.” But instead of playing the infamous Gungan, Best made his return as a Jedi named Kelleran Beq.
In the newest episode, titled “The Foundling,” Best appears briefly in a flashback to Order 66, when the clone troopers betrayed the Jedi and ruthlessly murdered nearly everyone. Best’s Jedi knight Kelleran saves a young Grogu, who found himself alone facing a group of clone troopers. Kelleran saves the little alien and dispatches the enemies with his two lightsabers, allowing Grogu to escape with him on a ship. The episode ends without showing where Kelleran and Grogu fly off to, opening up the possibility of Best to reappear later on.
This isn’t the first time Best has played Kelleran. He originated the role on the web series “Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge,” a children’s game show where contestants completed obstacle courses to become Jedi knights.
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Best is most known for playing Jar Jar in the “Star Wars” prequel movies, a controversially unpopular role for which he was ridiculed. Jar Jar first appeared in “A Phantom Menace” in 1999 and was met with near-universal animosity from longtime “Star Wars” fans for his silly accent and goofy personality.
Twenty years after playing Jar Jar, Best has opened up about how the backlash nearly drove him to suicide.
“It hit me. It came right for me. I was called every racial stereotype you can imagine. There was this criticism of being this Jamaican, broken dialect, which was offensive because I’m of West Indian descent — I’m not Jamaican. It was debilitating. I didn’t know how to respond,” Best said in a 2019 interview. “The depression hit me. Hard. I was just broken. The only thing I could think of to make me feel better was to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. But this time when I walked across the bridge, I didn’t see the lights of Manhattan. I didn’t see the towers [or] the potential of hard work and ingenuity. I didn’t see anything; I just saw a fog. I felt tired of having to explain myself. I felt tired of having to defend myself and defend my work. I felt tired of having to fight back against racism and the racial stereotypes. I just wanted to play a part. I was exhausted.”
