Jar Jar Binks has endured as one of the most reviled characters in the Star Wars franchise to date, but what if Michael Jackson had played the Gungan in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace? First released domestically on May 19th, 1999, Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace opened to a mixed bag of reviews, with George Lucas' much-hyped prequel movie failing to live up to the almost impossible levels of expectations set by the original Star Wars trilogy 16 years prior. Particular ire was directed at the CGI character Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best), who was regarded by critics of the time as toyetic and acting as a thinly veiled merchandising opportunity rather than a serious character worthy of the Star Wars franchise.

A bumbling entity despised even by his own kind, Jar Jar Binks is a Gungan exiled from his home and reluctantly taken in by Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) at the beginning of The Phantom Menace. Across Episode I, Jar Jar is depicted as a Mr. Magoo-style character whose slapstick misadventures inadvertently result in success, such as managing to take on a slew of Droidekas while attempting to shake a droid torso off his foot. This miraculous and often ridiculous talent for survival only served to deepen the well of ill-feeling for Jar Jar's character and has even given rise to theories that Jar Jar is a secret Force user or hidden Sith known as Darth Jar Jar.

Related: Boba Fett Made Peli Motto The Modern Star Wars' Jar Jar Binks

Yet Jar Jar's character and subsequent reception may have been very different had the King of Pop been cast in 1998. Per Vice, Michael Jackson was keen on the role of Jar Jar Binks, with the former Jackson 5 star believing he could bring a unique physicality and spectacle to the role. Here's what would have happened had Michael Jackson played Jar Jar Binks in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, as well as why Jackson was ultimately passed over for the role.

Michael Jackson Really Wanted To Play Jar Jar In The Phantom Menace

michael jackson George lucas Star Wars

As first reported in 2015, Michael Jackson was adamant that he wanted to play Jar Jar Binks in The Phantom Menace, with the singer going as far as to outline his vision for the character to George Lucas. According to Lucas, Jackson wanted "to do it in prosthetics and makeup like Thriller" - making Jar Jar essentially a practical effect given life by Jackson's considerable skills as a dancer. However, Lucas was adamant that he wanted to create Jar Jar using CGI, resulting in the Star Wars creator turning down Jackson's request to play the Gungan. Former Stomp star Ahmed Best would ultimately go on to take the poisoned chalice Jar Jar role, with Best originally intended to provide motion capture data only before his offer to also voice the character was accepted.

Based on Best's aforementioned Vice interview, it appears Jackson did not get over Lucas' Jar Jar snub quickly. While attending a Michael Jackson concert with Lucas and The Phantom Menace star Natalie Portman, Best was taken backstage to meet Jackson, where he recounts: “We were taken backstage, and we met Michael... George introduced me as ‘Jar Jar,’ and I was like, ‘That’s kind of weird.’ Michael was like, ‘Oh. OK." Best goes on to say Michael subsequently drove off after the conversation, with Lucas later explaining that Michael wanted to play the role of Jar Jar in prosthetics rather than CGI.

How Jackson's Jar Jar Would Have Been Different From Ahmed Best's

Obi wan looking over jar jar bad CGI phantom menace

Although both Best and Jackson would have been working with the same script, it is not hard to imagine that Jackson's Jar Jar Binks portrayal would have been significantly different. As aforementioned, Jackson's plan for Jar Jar involved creating the Gungan using physical effects and props, which may have gone some way to mitigating Jar Jar's weightless, cartoonish feel in the movie. While some of The Phantom Menace's CGI is very impressive, Jar Jar's image (among others) is less so, with his on-screen presence remaining rather jarring. Obi-Wan Kenobi actor Ewan McGregor can be seen in multiple shots not looking in the right place relative to Jar Jar's CGI head, which further cements the production's apparent need for a physical-based Jar Jar.

Related: What Star Wars Fans Can Learn From Jar Jar Binks

Furthermore, Jackson would have likely put his own spin on the Gungan exile, which may have mitigated at least a portion of the hatred towards the character. In particular, Jar Jar's voice has been selected for singular criticism over the years since The Phantom Menace's release, with critiques of Best's Jar Jar Binks voice ranging from it sounding childish to being an outright racist caricature. Yet Jackson's lilting voice and clear penchant for vocal work could have gone a long way to mitigating the fiasco that is Jar Jar's voice - instantly bettering the character as a result. While Jar Jar's character in The Phantom Menace's story is still incredibly toyetic and likely would not have changed based on the actor portraying him, Jackson's ideas for Jar Jar do make sense in the context of the nightmare his character quickly became in 1999.

Would Jackson Have Been Enough To Save The Phantom Menace In 1999?

It goes without saying that Jackson held incredible star status and pull in 1999, with his name top-billing in almost every sense of the phrase. Lucas knew as much, with Best recounting that "ultimately Michael Jackson would have been bigger than the movie, and I don’t think he [Lucas] wanted that.” In this way, it is hard to know whether Jackson's draw would have exponentially increased The Phantom Menace's popularity or whether audiences would have struggled to look past the fact that Jackson was on screen in front of them. Ultimately, there would have likely been a bit of both of these scenarios in any version of The Phantom Menace Jackson starred in - and would have detracted from the worldbuilding and immersion that Lucas prides himself on in the Star Wars franchise. In this way, Jackson may well have saved the character of Jar Jar Binks from universal revulsion, but he would have been able to do little regarding the misguided Gungan plot, ridiculous droids, or stuttering pacing of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace in 1999.

Next: What Happened To Jar Jar Binks After The Prequels?