The 2008 Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie revealed that Jabba the Hutt has a son, Rotta, who has yet to appear outside of the TV series. Rotta was sought by both the Separatist Alliance and the Galactic Republic in The Clone Wars, with each side hoping to gain Jabba’s favor (and hyperspace lanes) through him. Rotta was safe by the end of the movie and briefly appeared in a The Clone Wars episode, but the Star Wars canon timeline has yet to use him again in a future property.
The Clone Wars restarted the Star Wars franchise’s depiction of the famous war, initiating Dave Filoni’s CGI animated series with a movie in 2008. The film not only introduced Rotta, but also the show’s most famous original characters, Ahsoka Tano and Clone Captain Rex. Although The Clone Wars began before 2014, its inclusion in the post-2014 canon timeline and its many contradictions of Legends-era Clone Wars material resulted in some considering it a canon-exclusive property.
Separatist force kidnapped Rotta in the 2008 film, hoping to frame the Galactic Republic for the act and form an alliance with the Hutt Clan. The plan ultimately backfired, and Republic forces returned Rotta to Jabba, revealing the treachery of both the Separatist Alliance and Ziro the Hutt in the process. Rotta only briefly appeared in the Clone Wars season 3 episode “Sphere of Influence” since then, but the post-original trilogy era presents numerous opportunities for Jabba’s son to return to the Star Wars franchise.
Jabba the Hutt died in Return of the Jedi, which ought to make Rotta the de facto ruler of his father’s criminal empire, yet The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett show that this wasn’t the case. Jabba’s majordomo, Bib Fortuna, and later the legendary bounty hunter Boba Fett claimed Jabba’s criminal assets, yet there was no mention of Rotta in either Disney+ series. Jabba’s cousins, “The Twins,” attempted to claim Jabba’s territory, making Rotta’s absence even stranger.
Some possible explanations for Rotta’s absence are that he died sometime before his father or simply isn’t old enough to rule a criminal empire. Hutts live for centuries and might age similarly to Yoda’s species, which could mean that Rotta is still an infant or young child in the era of the New Republic. Another possibility is that Rotta matured and chose to leave his life of organized crime, similar to Geezer from the non-canon Star Wars: Visions animated series.
If Rotta ever returns to the Star Wars franchise, there are still opportunities in certain eras and canon properties. The third season of The Mandalorian and the second season of The Book of Boba Fett could give Rotta his live-action debut, whether or not he’s interested in running his father’s crime syndicate. If Rotta is still years away from becoming a crime lord, the sequel trilogy era has plenty of room for Rotta to appear after his Star Wars: The Clone Wars debut.
