Ewok

Ewoks are a fictional species of small, mammaloid bipeds that appear in the Star Wars universe. They are hunter gatherers resembling teddy bears that inhabit the forest moon of Endor and live in various arboreal huts and other simple dwellings. They first appeared in the 1983 film Return of the Jedi and have since appeared in two made for television films, The Ewok Adventure (1984) and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor (1985), as well as a short-lived animated series and several books and games.

Not to be confused with Wookiee.
For other uses, see Ewok (disambiguation).

Ewok
Information
Home worldEndor
DistinctionsPrimitive, curious, friendly, courageous, intelligent

Concept and creation

George Lucas created the Ewoks because he wanted Return of the Jedi to feature a tribe of primitive creatures that bring down the technological Empire. He had originally intended the scenes to be set on the Wookiee home planet, but as the film series evolved, the Wookiees became technologically skilled. Lucas designed a new species instead, and as Wookiees were tall, he made Ewoks short.[1] He also based the Ewoks' defeat of the Galactic Empire on the actions of the Viet Cong guerrillas who fought against American soldiers during the Vietnam War.[2] The Ewoks are named after the Miwok, a Native American tribe, indigenous to the Redwood forest in which the Endor scenes were filmed for Return of the Jedi, near the San Rafael location of Lucas' Skywalker Ranch.[3]

Using the image of the Griffon Bruxellois, a dog breed which Lucas owned, the Ewok was developed by renowned make-up artist Stuart Freeborn.[4][5] As presented in the films, Ewoks appear as stocky, sapient bipeds which stand about one metre tall. They have flat faces, are completely covered in fur, and have large jewel-like eyes. Both their fur and their eyes come in a variety of earth tones, primarily brown, white, grey, gold, and black. Only the costume of the Ewok portrayed by Warwick Davis had moving facial features,[6] though the 2012 Blu-ray release of Return of the Jedi added eye blinks to all of the Ewoks.[7] Despite their small size, the critters are strong; in the climactic battle scene of the film, they are shown physically overpowering and once even throwing Imperial stormtroopers, though this detail is not consistent throughout the film. Ewoks live high among the trees of their home moon's forests, in villages built on platforms between the closely spaced trees.

An "Ewokese" language was created for the films by Return of the Jedi's sound designer Ben Burtt. On the commentary track for the DVD of Return of the Jedi, Burtt explains that the language is based on Kalmyk, a Mongolic language spoken by the Kalmyk people of Russia. Burtt heard the language in a documentary and liked its sound, which seems very alien to Western ears. After some research, he identified an 80-year-old Kalmyk refugee. Burtt recorded her telling folk stories in her native language, and then used the recordings as a basis for sounds that became the Ewok language and were performed by voice actors who imitated the old woman's voice in different styles. For the scene in which C-3PO speaks Ewokese, actor Anthony Daniels worked with Burtt and invented words, based on the Kalmyk recordings.[8]

Notable Ewoks[9]

Wicket
Main article: Wicket W. Warrick

Wicket is the most prominently featured Ewok in Return of The Jedi. During his travels, he encounters Princess Leia in the forest. He helps her to the relative safety of his village, and notices her kindness and good spirit. Wicket has good knowledge of the terrain of Endor, leading him to be essential during the Rebellion's attack on the Imperial forces. Wicket was portrayed by actor Warwick Davis.

Teebo

Teebo is described by the Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary as being 'A watcher of the stars and a poet at heart.' His ability to make a sound practical judgement has caused him to have a position as a leader within the tribe. He wears a Gurreck skull headdress. Teebo was portrayed by Jack Purvis.

Chief Chirpa

Chief Chirpa has been the leader of the Ewok tribe for a total of 42 seasons. He has a large amount of wisdom and good judgement, but he has become forgetful due to his old age. He allows the Ewok tribe the authority to fight against the Empire. Chief Chirpa has a medallion signifying he is the chief of the Ewoks. Chirpa was played by Jane Busby.

Logray

Logray is the Ewok tribal shaman, who relies on ancient magic in order to assist his tribe. He is suspicious of all outsiders, which is reinforced due to the arrival of Imperial troops. Logray was portrayed by Mike Edmonds who also was "tail-puppeteer" for Jabba the Hutt.

Paploo

Paploo is Chief Chirpa's nephew and a scout who, along with Wicket, helps lead the Rebels to the shield generator protecting the Death Star. Although his effort to lure four Imperial scouts away from the bunker could have compromised the attack, it was relatively successful as he stole a speeder bike and forced three of the scouts to give chase, allowing the rebels to overpower the last guard and gain entrance. Paploo is seen later helping the Ewoks fight the Empire.

Nippet

Nippet is a baby Ewok who gets her name in the vintage era. Nippet is the daughter of Lumat.[10]

Lumat

Lumat is the chief woodcutter of the tribe, and is the father of Nippet.[10]

The forest moon of Endor (Ewok's home world)
Main article: Endor (Star Wars)

Endor
Star Wars location
First appearanceReturn of the Jedi
Last appearanceStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Created byGeorge Lucas
GenreScience fiction
Information
TypeForested moon
Race(s)Ewok, Dulok, Gorax, Yuzzum
TerrainForested, Grassland, Desert (minor), Mountainous, Rivers (shallow)

Endor is a fictional moon in the Star Wars universe, known for its endless forests, savannahs, mountain ranges, and a few oceans. The moon was the site of a pivotal battle depicted in Return of the Jedi.

Description

Endor first appears in Return of the Jedi, in which it is the body in whose orbit the second Death Star is constructed, and is the home of a race of furry aliens called Ewoks. The moon later appears in the original Star Tours Disney theme park attraction, Ewok TV movies The Ewok Adventure and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor, as well as the animated Ewoks and its Marvel Comics tie-in series.

Various descriptions of the Endor system exist in various media. Special effects storyboards for Return of the Jedi refer to a distant orb in the system as "Planet Endor". According to the Return of the Jedi novelization, the planet disappeared in an ancient cataclysm. The Ewok television films depict a gas giant in the sky, and novels such as The Truce at Bakura and Dark Apprentice also mention a planet visible from the moon. The planet is called "Tana" in the Ewoks animated series, which also depicts a binary star system (while other sources depict only one sun).[11]

In a Star Wars Tales comic entitled Apocalypse Endor, an Imperial veteran of Endor refers to the moon being devastated by the impact of falling debris from the Death Star, which was blown up while in orbit around the moon. However, another character dismisses this as a myth, saying that most of the Death Star's mass was obliterated in the explosion, and that the Rebels "took care of the rest".[12]

Filming

Scenes set on Endor were filmed on private logging company land that was shortly thereafter clearcut near the town of Smith River, California; the speeder chase scene was filmed at the Chetham Grove section of Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park. [13] [14] [11] near the "Avenue of the Giants" in Humboldt Redwoods State Park.[15]

Appearances

Return of the Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker
Ewok Village, Star Tours: The Adventures Continue at Walt Disney World in Florida

The Ewoks are involved in a large portion of the final installment in Lucasfilm's Star Wars trilogy. When the Empire begins operations on the moon of Endor, prior to the events depicted in the film, it ignores the primitive Ewoks. Princess Leia, part of a Rebel strike team, then befriends the Ewok Wicket W. Warrick, a scout from Bright Tree Village,[16] and is taken to meet the other Ewoks. The Ewoks capture Han Solo, Chewbacca, Luke and the droids in a trap, and take them back to the village. As Ewoks are a carnivorous race that considers humanoid flesh a delicacy, they prepare fires in anticipation of eating Han, Luke and Chewbacca to absorb their power.

The Ewoks worship the protocol droid C-3PO, thinking he is a god due to his golden, metallic body and later display of power arranged by Luke Skywalker through the Force. C-3PO tells the Council of Elders the adventures of the rebel heroes Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo. The Ewoks accept the Rebels into their tribe and ally themselves to their cause. They then help in the ground battle to destroy the Imperial shield generator on the forest floor, and their primitive weapons fell the Imperial Stormtroopers and the AT-ST walkers of the Empire. This assistance paves the way to victory at the Battle of Endor. Later that night, the Ewoks are shown holding a huge celebration.

Ewoks speak their native language of Ewokese, a fictional language created for the film. This language is understood by C-3PO, but not the humans in the film.

The word Ewok is not mentioned anywhere in the film, nor are any individuals referred to by name, except in the end titles, where names of the more prominent characters (Wicket, Paploo, Teebo, Logray and Chirpa) are shown, while the others are just listed as Ewoks.[17]

The final trailer for the upcoming film The Rise of Skywalker depicts the wreckage of the second Death Star in a watery location, which IGN interprets as Kef Bir, an ocean moon announced to feature in the film.[18] Wicket W. Warrick and another Ewok appear briefly at the end of The Rise of Skywalker.

Ewoks films for television and animated series
FilmRelease dateDirector(s) Screenwriter(s) Story byNetwork
The Ewok Adventure[lower-alpha 1] November 25, 1984John Korty Bob Carrau George LucasABC
Ewoks: The Battle for Endor November 24, 1985Jim Wheat and Ken Wheat

After the release of Return of the Jedi, the Ewoks starred in two made-for-TV movies, both of which starred Warwick Davis reprising his role as Wicket from Return of the Jedi.[19] The first film, The Ewok Adventure, was released in November 1984, followed by Ewoks: The Battle for Endor the next year.[19] The Ewoks also starred in cartoon series on ABC known simply as Ewoks.[20]

A teddy bear-like Ewok doll appears in the animated series Star Wars Resistance.[21]

Reception

The Ewoks are seen to be a controversial addition to Return of the Jedi and the Star Wars universe in general, and are seen by some to be the weakest link of the original trilogy. According to Tami Katzoff of MTV News, "a prevailing theory among Ewok-haters is that the creatures were originally conceived as a sure way to appeal to small children and sell plush toys to their parents."[22] Others enjoy the Ewoks, and they have proven to be very popular with children from their introduction in 1983 to the present day.[23]

The Ewoks were better received on Return of the Jedi than their in their own spin-off TV films.

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic CinemaScore [24]
Return of the Jedi 82% (93 reviews)[25] 58 (24 reviews)[26] N/A
The Ewok Adventure 23% (13 reviews)[27] N/A N/A

Emmy Awards

Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure was one of four films to be juried-awarded Emmys for Outstanding Special Visual Effects at the 37th Primetime Emmy Awards.[28] The film was additionally nominated for Outstanding Children's Program but lost in this category to an episode of American Playhouse.[29]

At the 38th Primetime Emmy Awards, Ewoks: The Battle for Endor and the CBS documentary Dinosaur! were both juried-awarded Emmys for Outstanding Special Visual Effects.[30] The film additionally received two nominations for Outstanding Children's Program and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Special.[31][32]

See also

Notes
  1. Retitled Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure for its theatrical and later releases

References
  1. George Lucas, commentary track on the Return of the Jedi DVD.
  2. George Lucas, "making of" documentary on the Return of the Jedi 2004 DVD release.
  3. Eric P. Nash (January 26, 1997). "The Names Came From Earth". The New York Times.
  4. "Star Wars Make-Up Artist Stuart Freeborn Dies". Sky News. Retrieved February 8, 2013
  5. "Makeup master Stuart Freeborn of 'Star Wars' dead at age 98". CNN. Retrieved February 8, 2013
  6. Daniels, Anthony (2019). I Am C-3PO: The Inside Story. DK. ISBN 9781465492562.
  7. Chitwood, Adam (September 1, 2011). "More Changes to STAR WARS Include Blinking Ewoks and Different Cut of Greedo Shooting First". Collider. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
  8. Ben Burtt, DVD commentary on The Return of the Jedi.
  9. Reynolds, David. Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary. pp. 256, 257.
  10. "Meet the Ewoks from Endor | StarWars.com". StarWars.com. October 30, 2014. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
  11. "Databank: Endor". StarWars.com. Archived from the original on May 24, 2011. Retrieved March 20, 2019.
  12. "Apocalypse Endor" Star Wars Tales 14 (December 11, 2004), Dark Horse Comics
  13. "Map of the Movies" (PDF). Humboldt - Del Norte Film Commission. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  14. "Experience America's Best Idea". Redwood National and State Parks. Interior Department of the USA. November 7, 2012. Archived from the original on October 21, 2018. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
  15. Amen, Hal (November 23, 2009). "Guide to California's redwood groves and the tallest trees on Earth". Matador Network. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  16. Bright Tree Village in the StarWars.com Databank
  17. ""Return of the Jedi (1983) Trivia"". Retrieved March 5, 2012.
  18. Bankhurst, Adam (October 23, 2019). "Star Wars: Location Where Death Star II Crashed Identified". Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  19. Alter, Ethan. "'Star Wars': How the Ewoks Came to TV 31 Years Ago". Yahoo. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  20. Alter, Ethan. "'Star Wars': How 'Ewoks' and 'Droids' Arrived on Saturday Morning TV". Yahoo. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  21. Lussier, Germain (October 29, 2018). "Ewok Merchandise Exists in the Star Wars Universe and We Have Questions". io9. Gizmodo. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  22. Katzoff, Tami (May 23, 2013). "'Star Wars' Fans Still Love To Hate Ewoks 30 Years Later". MTV. Archived from the original on September 10, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  23. "Cute but deadly: why Ewoks deserve your respect". www.telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  24. "Star Wars at Cinemascore". CinemaScore. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  25. "Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  26. "Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi". Metacritic. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  27. "The Ewok Adventure (1984)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  28. Leverence, John. "Outstanding Special Visual Effects - 1985". 37th Primetime Emmy Awards, September 22, 1985. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
  29. "Outstanding Children's Program - 1985". 37th Primetime Emmy Awards, September 22, 1985. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  30. Leverence, John. "Outstanding Special Visual Effects — 1986". 38th Primetime Emmy Awards, September 21, 1986. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
  31. "Outstanding Children's Program — 1986". 38th Primetime Emmy Awards, September 21, 1986. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  32. "Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Special — 1986". 38th Primetime Emmy Awards, September 21, 1986. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved February 6, 2016.

Further reading
  • Cavelos, Jeanne (2007). The Science of Star Wars: An Astrophysicist's Independent Examination of Space Travel, Aliens, Planets, and Robots as Portrayed in the Star Wars Films and Books. Macmillan. pp. 29–32. ISBN 978-1-4299-7176-8.
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