Boba Fett Is Now Much More Intimidating Without The Helmet

Since his introduction to the "Star Wars" canon nearly 45 years ago, a huge part of the allure and subsequent popularity surrounding Boba Fett was due to his character's mystery. Fett's favoritism developed first in an aesthetic sense, with his awesome armor, super cool ship, inexplicable ability to put Darth Vader on edge, and an incredibly rad helmet design. In the original trilogy, we never see what Boba Fett looks like under his armor (No, I am not counting original Boba Fett actor Jeremy Bulloch showing up in a dual role as an Imperial officer in "Empire"), and despite the character's "death," Boba Fett has remained a fan favorite. When Disney+ announced that "The Book of Boba Fett" was on the docket, the question was immediate ... how do you do a show about a character we've never really seen?

Disney+

Well, in keeping with the lore that Boba is an unaltered clone of the famed Mandalorian bounty hunter Jango Fett, they cast the original Jango Fett actor, Temuera Morrison, to play him. The casting decision is brilliant not just in the sense that it perfectly continues the canon, but also because if anyone could make Boba Fett look intimidating without the helmet, it's Morrison. Last week's premiere felt like the show was struggling a bit to honor the character's legacy without outright changing everything about his villainous streak. This week, Morrison more than proved why Boba Fett is someone to fear.

Boba Fett's helmet is intimidating as hell on its own, so to match the power of the iconography, Fett's fleshy face has to be just as capable of striking terror into the hearts of his enemies. Fortunately, Temuera Morrison is just the guy to do it. 

This version of Boba Fett is bald, weathered, and boasting non-existent eyebrows, which only adds to the intensity of Morrison's acting. When he furrows his brows in disgust, his entire face shape changes due to the lack of hair. Now that I'm not so distracted by Boba Fett's sun damage the way I was last week, I couldn't help but notice that when he's screaming intimidatingly, the whites of his eyes and teeth pop out like a shrouded wild animal hunting its prey.

Disney+

Due to the actor's history of animated reactions and the fact he's 61 years old, the years also live on his face. Boba Fett survived being digested by the Sarlacc in the Great Pit of Carkoon, and his face should show it. All of his emotions feel 10x more intense because they've been embedded in his skin as lines and folds, almost like a warning sign that reads "Do not f*** with me." 

Boba Fett is still and will always be cool as hell with the helmet on, but everyone on Tatooine better understand that if they're on the receiving end of Boba Fett's wild-eyed expression, it may very well be the last thing they ever see.