‘Star Wars’ fans will be delighted that Chewbacca, Han Solo’s faithful buddy, returns for a prominent role in ‘The Force Awakens’.
It’s also heartening that the actor who played him in the original films, Peter Mayhew, is also back inside the costume this time around.
However Mayhew (below) is now 71 and has had problems with his knees, so another actor was needed to play the enormous wookiee for his action scenes.
Step forward 29-year-old Joonas Suotamo (pictured at the top), the latest unsung star of the ‘Star Wars’ universe.
Talking to Yahoo, the director of ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ JJ Abrams, told us how the pair of actors built Chewie’s performance:
“In the scenes where Peter was Chewbacca it was always wonder to have him in the suit playing this character that gave myself at least some of the best ‘Star Wars’ memories.
“We had a wonderful guy, this Finnish actor who is twice as tall as I am, playing Chewbacca in many of the action scenes, his name is Joonas, I cant say enough about him. They were both fantastic. There’s something about growing up 7 feet tall or more, 7-foot-2 I think [according to reports Joonas is actually 6-foot-10] that he had this love and respect and connection for this character of Chewie all his life.
“The fact that he got to play Chewie in so many scenes was a powerful thing for him but Peter was often there while Joonas was doing this almost to be a consultant.”
We don’t know loads about Joonas, but apparently he played basketball for Penn State from 2005-2008, as well as the Finnish national team. A native of Espoo in Finland, he apparently always wanted to pursue a career in movies.
Nabbing a role as one of the greatest characters in the biggest film off the decade is not a bad way to make your film debut.
‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ is in cinemas now. Watch our full interview with JJ Abrams below.
Image credit: IMDB/Press Asscociation
Read more:
JJ Abrams Hints About That Daniel Craig Cameo
18 Amazing Movie Scenes That Were Only In The Trailer
16 Star Wars Nods And In-jokes To Watch Out For In The Force Awakens
October 3, 1986[1] Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland
"It's very much like silent-era film, with Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. He's a mime character and that's what he does, and I guess in that minimalism comes the beauty of the character." ―Joonas Suotamo, on playing Chewbacca[src]
Joonas Suotamo (born October 3, 1986 in Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland) is a Finnish actor and basketball player who was the body double for Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. He replaced Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca in Star Wars: The Last Jedi and played the role again in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Peter Mayhew, however, was credited as Chewbacca consultant in The Last Jedi.
He reprised the role of Chewbacca for Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker.
Filmography[]
Sources[]
Notes and references[]
External links[]
- Joonas Suotamo on Wikipedia
- Joonas Suotamo at the Internet Movie Database
May 19, 1944, Barnes, London, England[source?]
April 30, 2019, North Texas, United States of America[1]
"[Star Wars] has been the best thing that ever happened to me. In the last 25 years, I've been able to travel all over the world, get paid for it. I never have to pay for a thing. I can go out in public without being recognized. If I want to be recognized in public, it will happen. Star Wars was great to me. I'm set for life." ―Peter Mayhew[src]
Peter Mayhew (May 19, 1944 – April 30, 2019) was a British actor, best remembered for his portrayal of Chewbacca in the Star Wars films. He was born in Barnes, London, England.
Biography[]
Prior to his work on Star Wars, Peter Mayhew was cast in the role of a Minotaur on a previous movie. The producers discovered Mayhew from a photograph in a newspaper article about men with large feet. Mayhew's portrayal of the Minotaur impressed several film-industry employees, who offered him a chance to act for more movies; he accepted. After finishing his work as the Minotaur, Mayhew received a phone call from 20th Century Fox, who informed him of the production for Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope and asked him to audition for one of the characters.
Mayhew (right) at SciFi Expo 2004
Upon entering the office, Mayhew spotted paintings of the characters on a wall, done by Ralph McQuarrie. At one end was Chewbacca, with a sign that read "Eight foot plus, blue eyes." Having blue eyes himself, Mayhew picked Chewbacca as the character to audition. Immediately afterward, the door to the office opened; director George Lucas walked into the room, with producer Gary Kurtz flanking him. Mayhew stood up on instinct, something he attributes to living in England. Lucas looked up, shook hands with Mayhew, turned to Kurtz and said "I think we found him." Lucas and Kurtz would go on to explain what the character was, as well as the design of the costume. Originally, Chewbacca had shorts and a vest, which Lucas advised against due to Chewbacca being an animal.
Lucas originally had the idea of casting David Prowse, a six footer, as Chewbacca, but in a show of irony, Prowse chose to be Darth Vader, because he "didn't want to be a masked character." Consequently, the role of Chewbacca was given to Mayhew. His first shot was Docking Bay 94, where Han Solo was talking to Jabba the Hutt.[2] When cast in the role, he studied the movement of large animals at the zoo to come up with an authentic sense of movement for Chewbacca. Mayhew did not provide the voice of Chewbacca; that was created by the film's sound designer, Ben Burtt, by mixing together the growls of different animals.
Mayhew donned the Chewbacca costume for the last time in The Force Awakens.
In addition to his work as Chewbacca in the films, he appeared in character in various commercials and for hospital appearances for sick children. Mayhew lived in Granbury, Texas. In an interview with the Fort Worth Star Telegram, he jokingly noted that he didn't get a medal at this ceremony either, a reference to the Star Wars scene in which Luke and Han get medals but the Wookiee gets none.
He was kind enough to make a cameo as himself in the Paducah Imperials FanForce feature-length fan film Star Wars Fanboy, scaring off stormtroopers with Wookiee noises, some of which he made himself on set.
Mayhew's family announced that he had passed away on April 30, 2019, in a post on Twitter.[1]