The Mandalorian season 2 finale is now dedicated to original Boba Fett actor Jeremy Bulloch. The actor famously portrayed Boba Fett in the original Star Wars trilogy and sadly passed away in December 2020 at the age of 75. Despite the bounty hunter only appearing on screen a handful of times, the character quickly went on to become a fan-favorite, which started to happen well before The Empire Strikes Back hit theaters in 1980. In honor of his passing, Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni decided to pay tribute to Bulloch.
Jeremy Bulloch passed away on December 17th and the final episode of The Mandalorian season 2 debuted at midnight on December 18th. The dedication pops up right before the post-credit scene in which Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison) and Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) take over the throne of Jabba the Hutt on Tatooine. The post-credit scene serves as the first announcement of the upcoming The Book of Boba Fett Disney+ series, which will premiere in December of this year.
The official Star Wars social media accounts also paid tribute to Jeremy Bulloch. "He will be remembered not only for his iconic portrayal of the legendary character, but also for his warmth and generous spirit which have become an enduring part of his rich legacy," said one of the posts. "Jeremy brought the perfect combination of mystery and menace to his performance of Boba Fett, which is just what I wanted the character to convey," says George Lucas. "In addition, Jeremy was a true gentleman who was very supportive of Star Wars and its fans, and I'm very grateful for his contributions to the saga and its legacy." Bulloch was very proud of the work that he did with the Star Wars franchise.
Over the years, Jeremy Bulloch was a fixture at conventions and had no problem signing things and taking pictures with fans. According to those who worked with him, Bulloch immediately understood how to bring the bounty hunter to life on the big screen. "I thought of Boba Fett as Clint Eastwood in a suit of armor," he recalled in an interview. The actor suggested the bounty hunter's slow, deliberate moves, cradled rifle, and cocked hip were signature attributes inspired by classic western gunfighters.
Jeremy Bulloch's gunslinger attitude helped keep Boba Fett around, even after many believed he died in Return of the Jedi. The western influences ended up being one of the genres that Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau focused on when crafting The Mandalorian, which brought Boba Fett back. Now, Temuera Morrison will be taking that influence even further as he fleshes out the character that Bulloch introduced on the big screen in The Book of Boba Fett. You can check out a screenshot of the tribute to Jeremy Bulloch above, thanks to Discussing Film on Twitter.