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Though Star Wars: The Force Awakens brought back Peter Mayhew to play Chewbacca, his age wouldn’t allow him to do as many stunts as he did—enter Joonas Suotamo, the new Chewie actor who played him in The Last Jedi and the upcoming Solo: A Star Wars Story. During an appearance on The Star Wars Show, Suotamo talks working with Mayhew to bring the character to life, and how he had to undergo special training to play the character.
His bit starts at 3:54:
Apparently, there’s a lot more to playing Chewbacca than just being really tall in a Wookie suit. Suotamo says that he has to keep his head stiff when he’s playing the character, and when he flips switches in the Falcon, he has to lazily swat his hand around the console.
Suotamo seems like a sweet guy, and it feels right that he should be the one to take up the Chewbacca mantle after Mayhew, who everyone says is just as endearing. Chewie will most likely make a return for Episode IX, but I wonder if they’re going to kill him off like they did with Han and Luke. Personally, I’d just like to see Chewie live out his own life in Kashyyyk. He deserves a happy ending.
Catch Suotamo as Chewbacca in Solo: A Star Wars Story when it comes out May 25.
