Star Wars has a history of creating some weird and wonderful characters, and while the likes of Chewbacca and R2-D2 have been a hit, others like Jar Jar Binks and the Ewoks haven't proved as popular. The recent era of the galaxy far, far away has been popularized by the marketing machine of Grogu, but what about the OG little green dude?
It's easy to forget that Master Yoda wasn't introduced until the second Star Wars movie, with Frank Oz voicing the babbling Jedi in 1980's The Empire Strikes Back.
We meet Yoda right at the end of his life as he was hiding out in the Dagobah system, where Luke Skywalker tracked him down to undergo his Jedi training.
Despite 'dying' at the end of the movie, Yoda has since appeared in numerous sequels, prequels, and spin-offs. He most recently popped up for a post-credit stinger in the High Republic-era The Acolyte, although his backstory goes back even further.
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Aside from his impressive skills as one of the most powerful Jedi to have ever lived, Yoda has become synonymous with his unique way of talking. This weirdly garbled speech has made Yoda such a standout from Star Wars, although we've never really understood why he speaks like that.
Yoda's species doesn't even have a name, although we have seen a female one in the form of The Phantom Menace's Yaddle. Bryce Dallas Howard voiced her in Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi, which led to more confusion because Yaddle spoke with Galactic Basic Standard instead of Yoda's signature speech.
Now, an interview with George Lucas has revealed why Yoda speaks the way he does. And no, it's not because he took a bump to the head.
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As reported by Variety, Lucas spilled all at an anniversary screening of The Empire Strikes Back and explained: "Because if you speak regular English, people won’t listen that much. But if he had an accent, or it’s really hard to understand what he’s saying, they focus on what he’s saying."
Referring to Yoda as a 'philosopher' of these movies, Lucas added: "I had to figure out a way to get people to actually listen — especially 12-year-olds."
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While it makes sense, the ever-online Star Wars fans aren't happy with the explanation. Taking to Reddit, one angry fan wrote: "That’s BS, George. Yoda spoke backwards when he was testing Luke. Once he revealed himself as the Jedi Master he started speaking normally."
Another added: "That’s the kind of thing that sounds really smart and insightful, unless you really think about it. Sure it worked with Yoda, but what about Jar Jar? An accent or different way of speaking can easily become a distraction."
A third said: "IMO that’s nice spin. I think it pretty obviously falls in line with Lucas’ problematic approach of using racial stereotypes for aliens. Yoda is supposed to evoke a Japanese zen monk. That’s why Yoda talks like that."
Not that we should have to remind you, but remember it's just a fictional sci-fi franchise.
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We dread to think what weird accent Grogu will have when he eventually speaks.