Will Yoda get his own 'Star Wars' movie? Frank Oz has a surprising answer
With the Star Wars cinematic universe expanding both forwards and backwards in time, any of the films’ characters has the opportunity for a big-screen comeback. And is any denizen of the galaxy far, far away more beloved than Yoda? The small-but-mighty swamp dweller, performed and voiced by puppeteer Frank Oz, has 900 years of largely unexplored backstory — not to mention that he’s probably floating around Ahch-To as a Force ghost, poking at porgs with his cane. When Oz made a surprise appearance at Saturday’s world premiere of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, he raised fans’ hopes that Yoda will make an appearance — hopes that Mark Hamill nudged forward with this tweet.
Coincidentally, when Yahoo Entertainment talked to Frank Oz in October about his director’s cut of Little Shop of Horrors, we broached the topic of Yoda’s future in the Star Wars universe. Turns out, Oz has a few ideas for a Yoda film. Well, one idea, anyway. And we’re not sure that Lucasfilm’s president, Kathleen Kennedy, will go for it. This reporter, on the other hand, couldn’t stop laughing. Read the conversation below.
Yahoo Entertainment: Yoda is not a Muppet. Do you have the same kind of connection to that character as you do to your Muppet characters?
Frank Oz: One has to always love characters one does, or else the character isn’t alive. No matter what character you do.
There’s a possibility for the first time of Yoda getting his own film.
Yeah, he is going to. He is going to. He’s going to be a chorus girl. He’s changing sex. He will become — he won’t kick that high, I think he’s a little too old for the extensions, but he’s going to do his best.
This is a big scoop you’re giving me. Are you sure you want to say this much?
No, I think it’s worth it. I think you’re a nice lady and should take that scoop.
Do you have feelings about his story continuing?
I think I’m not going to talk about Yoda here. I think that’s all I’m going to say! … And by the way, I’m happy to talk about Yoda another time. It’s just that if I get into Yoda, then all of a sudden this will The Yoda Story. And I mean, I think I’ve given you enough of a scoop with the chorus girl thing.
I didn’t even know Yoda had dance training!
He doesn’t, that’s the problem. The whole show is going to be about him struggling to learn dance and the different forms of dance. That’s what the show is about. Already I’ve given you way too much information.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi arrives Friday. Maybe Oz’s Yoda: A Star Wars Story will someday be in theaters, too.
Watch a trailer for ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’
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