Is Jar Jar Binks Actually A Powerful Sith Lord? The Popular 'Darth Jar Jar' Star Wars Theory Explained

Out of dozens of intriguing theories about Star Wars that the series' fans came up with over the years, one has stood out so much that even people who aren't really into the famous space opera heard about it.

Could it be that Jar Jar Binks, the bumbling comic relief from The Phantom Menace and other prequel films, was originally planned to be revealed as a powerful Sith Lord, his incompetent ways only a mask meant to disguise one of the most powerful beings in the Universe? Learn who came up with "Darth Jar Jar" theory, how it works, and the ways Lucasfilm hinted there may be truth to it in our brief explainer.

What Is ‘Darth Jar Jar’ Theory?

Jar Jar Binks Is a Sith Lord theory, also known simply as Darth Jar Jar theory, is a Star Wars fan theory that suggests the comic relief character Jar Jar Binks is secretly a powerful Sith Lord, or at least a powerful warrior and a Sith ally. The theory provides various supporting evidence that Jar Jar Binks was originally planned to be revealed as a Sith collaborator, but was rewritten by George Lucas following the character's negative reception in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.

Where Does ‘Darth Jar Jar’ Theory Comes From?

The Darth Jar Jar theory was devised by Redditor Lumpawarroo, who made a post in the /r/StarWars subreddit a few weeks ahead of the premiere of Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens in late 2015. The lengthy post provided various supporting evidence for the theory that Jar Jar Binks was a trained Force user, a Sith collaborator, and would play a central role in The Force Awakens. The post received over 72,000 upvotes and went viral online, with news reports and videos about the theory following in the next weeks.

What Evidence Supports 'Darth Jar Jar' Theory?

While there is no direct evidence in the films indicating that Jar Jar Binks is anything but a goofy comic relief, Lumpawarroo based his theory on several aspects of the film that hint that there might be more to Jar Jar than it appears:

• Jar Jar Binks' athleticism is on par with Jedi judging from his physical feats shown in the films. He is also a skilled warrior, with his fighting style being equivalent to Drunken Fist wushu – a discipline allows him to appear goofy and uncoordinated even as he lays waste to his enemies;

• Jar Jar is a master of Jedi Mind control, based on the character influencing major plot points of the Star Wars prequels, and him seemingly hand-waving near characters when important decisions are made;

• Jar Jar and Palpatine may be co-conspirators, with Jar Jar becoming a senator and facilitating Palpatine's rise to power;

• Considering that George Lucas intended for the prequel films to "rhyme" and mirror the original trilogy, Jar Jar Binks was supposed to "mirror" Yoda, a character who initially seems insignificant and not very important, but is secretly a master;

• George Lucas "chickened out" out of making Jar Jar Binks a major villain and rewrote the script after the character was poorly received by fans.

How Did George Lucas and Lucasfilm Acknowledge The 'Darth Jar Jar' Theory?

George Lucas and Jar Jar Binks' voice actor Ahmed Best had made nods that there might be some truth to the theory over the years.

Firstly, Lucas famously said "Jar Jar is the key to all of this" is a featurette about The Phantom Menace. Could he have meant that the character originally had a more pivotal role?

Jar Jar Binks voice actor Ahmed Best spoke about the theory on several occasions, once commenting that there was "a lot about it that's true."

And in issue 14 of Darth Vader comic book series released in 2017, Binks' name can be seen on a list of those directly related to the Jedi's downfall.

Finally, Darth Jar Jar is about to make and appearance in the upcoming TV special LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy, which follows the "villains are now heroes, heroes are now villains" premise. Check out Darth Jar Jar in the LEGO flesh in the trailer below!

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For the full history of Darth Jar Jar, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.