Star Wars has become an iconic symbol over the ages. From its original debut to its revamp in recent years, it's hard to find someone who isn't a fan of the franchise. Star Wars has introduced the world to some incredible characters, from the iconic Darth Vader and the scruffy-looking nerf-herder Han Solo, to the more recent additions of Rey, Finn, Dr. Aphra, and K-2SO.
However, for every beloved and exciting character in the Star Wars galaxy there is also an annoying, weird, cringeworthy, or just plain boring character. The characters on this list range from irritating to offensive − although, to be fair, some are both.
Each character discussed in this article will be solely from Star Wars canon, which means annoying Star Wars Legends characters (we're looking at you, Jaxxon the green space rabbit) will not be included. Additionally, characters who were annoying for a limited period of time will not be mentioned, which comprise of Luke in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, Boba Fett in Attack of the Clones, and Anakin through the whole prequel trilogy.
Here are the 15 Worst Characters In Star Wars.
15. The Ewoks
When the Ewoks made their first appearance in Return of the Jedi, they were met with mixed reactions. While some of the younger fans enjoyed the "teddy bear" aliens from Endor's forest moon, several older Star Wars fans felt that the Ewoks were a way for George Lucas to pander to children in order to sell toys.
It didn't make sense that the Ewoks, a relatively primitive and superstitious race, were able to mobilize an army equipped with only stone tools and miraculously defeat the Empire's storm troopers on speeder bikes and AT-STs.
Many Star Wars fans who are born in the 1980s or later may not even be aware of the severity of older fan's dissatisfaction with the role that Ewoks play in Return of the Jedi. However, before the prequel films, the Ewoks were often considered the most embarrassing and disappointing part of Star Wars films.
14. Zam Wesell
Zam Wesell is a bounty hunter contracted by Jango Fett to kill Senator Amidala in Attack of the Clones. Unfortunately, Zam Wesell is impressively terrible at her job, leaving many fans to wonder why Jango Fett would pay for her deadly services.
Wesell doesn't try to hide the fact that the Senator is in danger; after all, she sets off an explosive destroying one of her ships and killing many people, including one of the Senator's body doubles. In her second attempt, Wesell utilized ASN-121, a droid that deposites deadly kouhuns into Amidala's room.
However, the Jedi who were guarding Amidala kill the kouhuns and trace the droid back to Wesell. Wesell uses a KiSteer 1284 sniper rifle to destroy the droid in an attempt to stop Obi-Wan Kenobi from following her... but it begs the question: why didn't she just use the rifle to assassinate Amidala?
Of course, Wesell's weaknesses are mostly due to the inevitability of the plot; she was never going to succeed in killing Amidala because Amidala is a main character and integral part of the prequel trilogy. However, a surprising amount of Attack of the Clones is devoted to Wesell's strange attempts.
13. Boss Nass
The portly toad-like Gungan leader Boss Nass suffers from many of the same problems as his fellow Gungan, Jar Jar Binks. He speaks in accented, broken English, and dresses in a robe which some fans believe looks similar to a boubou worn in West African traditions. He complains about the humans on Naboo, saying, "dey tink dey so smartee, dey tink dey brains so big."
His speech pattern and accent seem to undermine his point, and, instead of making him seem like an admirable alien leader, he appears dimwitted and unintelligible. Of course, it doesn't help that spit flies from his impressive jowls as he is Jedi mind-tricked into helping Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn.
Lucas has denied that any of The Phantom Menace characters are meant to be racial stereotypes, but many fans associate Boss Nass's accent and apparel with Caribbean and African cultures.
The only saving grace of Boss Nass is that he doesn't have much screen time.
12. Jocasta Nu
Jocasta Nu is the Jedi Master who was the Chief Librarian of the Jedi Archives on Coruscant during the time of the Clone Wars. On one hand, she has the potential of being an amazing character: she is a Jedi Master entrusted with the history of the Order and a problem solver who can guide Obi-Wan to the answers that he desires... except this isn't what she does at all.
When Obi-Wan goes to Master Nu to inquire about the mysterious planet Kamino, she helps him search the archive, but when search comes up empty, she tells him "if an item does not appear in our records, it does not exist."
Smugness aside, this is the most close-minded, narrow, and ridiculous view. If something does not appear in a library, then there's a chance that it hasn't been discovered yet. Jocasta Nu perhaps exemplifies the inflexibility and prideful short-sightedness of the Jedi Order as a whole, but she also feels like a missed opportunity.
11. Unkar Plutt
When actor Simon Pegg was added to The Force Awakens (2016) cast, it felt like an opportunity for the hilarious character actor to add a unique character to the Star Wars universe. However, Pegg's Unkar Plutt has about as much personality as Grumpy the Dwarf.
As an angry Crolute who deals with scrap pieces on the planet Jakku, Plutt was originally going to play a larger part (or at least, Chewbacca was going to pull his arms off). However, he ends up being a momentary blob in the film. While Chewie pulling off Plutt's arms doesn't actually sound like a very good addition to the film, it was at least going to be something that involved Plutt, who otherwise doesn't add anything to the film.
Additionally, the actor himself is unrecognizable, physically and otherwise. Pegg playing Plutt doesn't add anything to the story, and in fact, any actor could have played him.
10. Battle Droids
The B1 Battle Droid looked like a fearsome enemy, marching in endless rows in the army of the Trade Federation... well, until they started talking. Suddenly, these droids seem to have more in common with the seagulls from Finding Nemo (2003) than with the Terminator.
The droids should be a menace to the heroes, but they are repeatedly used for comic relief, making them less and less threatening. Their repeatedly chirping of "roger, roger" makes them a greater threat to the sanity of movie-goers than to the film's protagonists. They would have been much more terrifying foes if they didn't speak.
To make matters worse, the battle droids inevitably suffer from "stormtrooper syndrome": they can't shoot a target that is right next to them. This means that their seemingly innumerable legions just end up becoming large piles of broken parts.
9. Rotta the Hutt
Rotta the Huttlet (yes, the Official Star Wars databank actually calls him a "Huttlet") is the son of Jabba the Hutt who is kidnapped by Ziro the Hutt and Count Dooku during the Clone Wars. The basketball-sized Hutt, who his father calls "Punky Muffin" for some unimaginable reason, is the heir to Jabba's criminal empire and a major part of the Clone Wars film.
Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, are tasked with retrieving the kidnapped Hutt in order to convince the Hutt criminal empire to side with the Galactic Republic over the Confederacy.
However, while Jabba calls Rotta "Punky Muffin," Ahsoka Tano's nickname − "Stinky" − may be a more accurate one. The baby Hutt makes a mixture of strange noises, including human infant noises and pig noises punctuated with burping sounds.
8. Nute Gunray
Nute Gunray is the leader of the Trade Federation, a major player in the Confederacy, and one of the primary antagonists in the prequel films. Gunray collaborates with the Sith in order to destroy the Galactic Republic. This Neimoidian could have been a seriously intimidating villain. Instead, however, Nute Gunray is one of (unfortunately many) characters in The Phantom Menace who embody a racial stereotype.
Gunray, along with his Neimoidian lackeys, speak with a forced and stereotypical Asian accent, which has appeared in highly offensive "yellow face" performances over the ages. The Neimoidians also wear robes and headdresses, which some fans believe were inspired by traditional Asian attire. Some critics think that Gunray's obsession with technology and the Trade Federation's conflation of "trade" and "war" also play into worn stereotypes about Japan.
While George Lucas denied these claims, the result is a character who is lame at best and offensive at worst.
7. Fode & Beed
Fode and Beed (an abbreviation of their full, combined name Fodesinbeed Annodue) are the two-headed podracer announcers of the Boonta Eve Podrace on Tatooine. Fode (pictured on the right) gives commentary in Basic, while Beed (on the left) speeks in Huttese. The gimmick might be amusing at first, since it is clearly a parody of real sports commentators, but the pair of literal talking heads appear too often during the pod race.
Originally, Fode and Beed were going to be played by a pair of live-action actors in alien make-up, who would be digitally conjoined in post-production. However, the results of this CGI experiment did not work, and the character was instead completely generated. Perhaps if the original plan had worked, Fode and Beed would have been more effective and better received.
6. Sy Snootles & J’ywz’gnk Kchhllbrxcstk Et’nrmdndlcvtbrx
The Max Rebo Band is a twelve-member ensemble that performs "Jedi Rocks" at Jabba's Palace on Tatooine. The band's sequence is unnecessary, and the Special Edition extended musical sequence is a strange tonal shift from the rest of the film. It is a cringeworthy addition.
While the band as a whole is grating, two of the band members may take the cake for being the most annoying: singer Sy Snootles (pictured left) and "singer" Joh Yowza (pictured right; full name: J’ywz’gnk Kchhllbrxcstk Et’nrmdndlcvtbrx).
Sy Snootles has a detailed backstory. In addition to being a singer and dancer, she used to be a spy who sold information on the Hutt family. Joh Yowza, in contrast, only appears in the band sequence, but has a loud and obnoxious voice that reverberates throughout Return of the Jedi.
The only thing worse than the band is its original name: Evar Orbus and His Galactic Jizz-Wailers.
5. Lumpy (Lumpawaroo)
Lumpawaroo, or "Lumpy," is Chewbacca's son who appears in The Star Wars Holiday Special − and yes, the Holiday Special is, in fact, Star Wars canon.
The Holiday Special may not do Lumpy justice. His backstory is heartfelt and powerful: he was only a child when he became enslaved by Imperial forces on Kashyyyk and forced to work at a child labor camp. Lumpy managed to escape from the camp, and was about to be attacked by Imperials when his father and Rebel forces appeared to save him. This story sounds like it could make for an interesting tale and introduce a new compelling character.
However, the Holiday Special is a truly terrible film, and Lumpy's character suffers from an awkward and stilted performance. The script alone is highly cringeworthy. Perhaps in a future installment, Lumpy will have a shot at being a new and interesting addition to the larger Star Wars universe.
4. Ziro the Hutt
Ziro the Hutt is a bright purple Hutt who is covered in colorful tattoos and wears a pink feathered headdress. Instead of speaking Huttese like Jabba, he speaks Basic in a strange voice: high, raspy, accented, and with a lisp.
In fact, according to Dave Filoni, the creator of Clone Wars, George Lucas himself specifically requested that Ziro sound like famed writer Truman Capote. After Ziro the Hutt appeared in The Clone Wars animated movie and later television show, some critics were concerned that the Hutt came off as a mocking stereotype of a gay man. Lucas's strange request to make a "Truman Capote Hutt" does not help this accusation.
Dave Filoni also defended Ziro as a character, saying that Ziro was a favorite among the crew. However, the character has not found many fans outside of the studio, and is generally regarded as a major misstep.
3. Watto
Watto is the junk salesman who keeps Shmi and Anakin Skywalker as his slaves on Tatooine. Watto is obsessed with money, and his miserly attitude is only mitigated by his weakness for gambling on podraces.
While the Toydarian is immune to Jedi mind tricks, he is still tempted to make a wager with Qui-Gon Jinn, which ultimately leads to Anakin's freedom. Many critics, however, felt that Watto was an inappropriate and antisemitic character; specifically, his particular accent (along with his personality) invoke a stereotypical Jewish person. Additionally, even the trope of making a wager of life and death has been associated with "evil" Jewish men since Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice.
Unfortunately, Watto is one of many characters in The Phantom Menace that appears to be based off of an offensive caricature, and this repetition in itself makes it harder to believe that it was accidental.
2. Salacious B. Crumb
Salacious B. Crumb is Jabba the Hutt's pet Kowakian monkey-lizard. He also serves as the "court jester" of Jabba's Palace. The result is a mocking Muppet that cackles and makes high-pitched noises to punctuate whatever non-specific action is happening at any given moment during the Jabba's Palace sequences in Return of the Jedi.
The defining characteristic of Salacious B. Crumb is that he is incredibly and unapologetically annoying − in fact, this seems to be the whole point. He highlights Jabba's depraved and deadly sense of humor with his squawks, whistles, and chatter.
But audiences didn't need another reason to hate Jabba (he's keeping Han as a wall decoration and Leia as a slave, after all), and Crumb does not add anything new. Return of the Jedi would have been better off cutting the strange puppet creature entirely.
Thankfully, Salacious B. Crumb is eventually killed during the explosion that destroys Jabba's barge.
1. Jar Jar Binks
Jar Jar Binks is perhaps the most infamously hated Star Wars character. He is a bumbling clown who speaks in obnoxious broken Basic. While George Lucas claims that he was inspired by Goofy (the lovable and clumsy dog from Mickey Mouse cartoons), many critics of The Phantom Menace have a hard time separating Jar Jar Binks's dimwitted antics from his faux Jamaican accent.
Some fans have suggested that the result is a modern minstrel show, which draws humor from caricatures that mock black people. Both George Lucas and actor Ahmed Best were horrified that many people saw Jar Jar as a racist stereotype, and, despite the fact that they both loved the character, Lucas chose to lessen Jar Jar's role in the subsequent prequel films.
Fans of Jar Jar Binks today are few and far between, with some believing that he's secretly a Sith Lord.
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Who do you think is the worst character in the Star Wars universe? Let us know in the comments!