Who is Boba Fett? Full character history as he returns in The Mandalorian

It’s official – Boba is back! After a tease earlier in season two of The Mandalorian on Disney Plus the famed bounty hunter has officially returned as of the sixth episode, with Temuera Morrison strapping on the Beskar armour of Boba Fett (and you can read our full The Mandalorian review for details).

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Going forward, it seems like Fett will play a key role in future episodes, but his reappearance has raised even more questions than it solves. Who is exactly is Boba Fett? Is Boba Fett a Mandalorian? How did he survive the Sarlacc pit, and what’s his connection to the wider Star Wars universe?

While some of these questions remain unanswered, we may have some pertinent information about the others – so here’s everything you need to know about Boba Fett.

Boba Fett first appeared in 1980’s Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, as one of the bounty hunters hired by Darth Vader to track down charming fugitive Han Solo.

He ultimately succeeds, tracing the gang to Cloud City where the Empire closes in around them, with Solo being encased in Carbonite and delivered by Fett to the repulsive crime lord: Jabba The Hutt.

That takes us into the opening act of Return of the Jedi, where Fett can be seen spending time among Hutt’s criminal associates and watching his sadistic idea of entertainment.

Following Luke’s unsuccessful attempt to rescue Han, the two of them are sentenced to death by Hutt, who takes them on his barge to the terrifying Sarlacc Pit.

Fortunately, after some assistance from R2-D2, our heroes are able to escape being dinner for the desert monster, which digests its victims slowly over an agonising period of a thousand years.

Fett is not so lucky, losing control of his jetpack in the chaos of Skywalker’s escape, which sends him directly into the Sarlacc’s mighty maw.

Despite having a rather undignified death, Boba Fett became a firm favourite character among Star Wars fans, owing largely to his cool armour and the mystery provided by his helmet.

Fans wanted to know more about who this enigmatic figure was and George Lucas gave them answers in the second instalment of his divisive prequel trilogy: Attack of the Clones.

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The movie revealed that Boba was actually a clone of bounty hunter Jango Fett, who raised him as a son before he was slain by Mace Windu at the Battle of Geonosis.

Boba inherited his father’s Mandalorian armour, but it should be made clear that unlike his father he’s not a follower of the associated religion.

As depicted in The Mandalorian on Disney Plus, true believers in “the way” swear never to remove their helmet in front of a living soul.

These rules do not apply to the Fetts, who are regarded as common mercenaries by the people of Mandalore and are believed to have stolen their armour from a fallen warrior – and Boba as a clone would be even less subject to Mandalorian customs.

In the original Star Wars Extended Universe, Boba escaped the Sarlacc Pit after Return of the Jedi and stories were written chronicling his later adventures across the galaxy.

However, these were rendered no longer canon by Disney after its acquisition of Lucasfilm, meaning that the fate of the character in the current continuity was unknown for years.

Boba Fett and Din Djarin in The Mandalorian (Disney+)

But now that’s all changed. In the most recent episode of the Mandalorian Boba returns, demanding back his armour (and getting it) from lead character Din Djarin, noting that he had been “abandoned” on the Tattooine sands for a number of years. After showing off his skills, Boba now looks to be a part of the series cast going forward, which may reveal even more about how he escaped his fate.

Fans don’t have much longer to wait to discover the truth anyway, as the Star Wars spin-off is set to continue on Disney+, with The Mandalorian release schedule seeing a new episode drop every Friday.

And for those asking: when is The Mandalorian set? We’ve also got you covered. Plus you can check out our The Mandalorian season one recap.

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The Mandalorian season two continues on Fridays. Check out what else is on with our TV Guide, or take a look at our new TV shows 2020 page to find out what’s airing this autumn and beyond.