Declan Mulholland (December, 1932–June 29, 1999) was a Belfast-born actor who played Jabba the Hutt in scenes cut from the 1977 release of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.
Biography
Declan Mulholland was born on December, 1932 in Belfast, Northern Ireland.[1] He played Jabba the Hutt in scenes cut from the 1977 release of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.
In Mulholland's scenes as Jabba, Jabba is represented as a rotund Human dressed in a shaggy fur coat. George Lucas has stated his intention was to use an alien creature for Jabba, but the special effects technology of the time was not up to the task of replacing Mulholland. In 1997, the Special Edition re-releases restored and altered the original scene to include a computer-generated portrayal of Jabba.
A scene from 1977 recycled for use in the 1997 release of A New Hope by inserting a CGI Jabba over Mulholland
The likeness of Mulholland as Jabba has been re-used to represent other characters in the Star Wars universe. Pablo Hidalgo used Mulholland's appearance as the basis for Opun Mcgrrrr in his 1996 short story "Spare Parts."[2] The trading card set 2013 Topps Star Wars Illustrated used Mulholland's image to represent Jabba's henchman Heater; Heater had replaced Jabba in a version of Mulholland's original scene rewritten for the 1981 radio episode "The Han Solo Solution."[3] In the 2021 comic issue Star Wars 16, an unnamed member of the Son-tuul Pride syndicate was based on Mulholland.[4]
Although his most famous role was left on the cutting-room floor, Mulholland had a long and varied career as an actor, amassing over fifty credits in movies and on British television between 1962 and 1997.
Mulholland appeared alongside Star Wars actors Jack Purvis and Kenny Baker in the movie Time Bandits. In this movie, his costume is almost exactly the same as the costume he wore as "Jabba."
Works
Filmography
| Year | Title | Contribution(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope | Jabba the Hutt | Role was cut from the film |
Sources
- From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga
"Around the Galaxy" — Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 9- "Renewing the Universe" — Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 10
- "Star FX: Shades of Jabba" — Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 11
- "Second Trooper: The Man Behind the Hutt" — Star Wars: The Official Magazine 10
- "Scouting the Galaxy" — Star Wars Insider 46
- The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film
- Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga – The Official Collector's Edition
Notes and references
External links
- Declan Mulholland at the Internet Movie Database
- Landis, Harry (27 July 1999). "Obituary – Declan Mulholland" in The Guardian. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
- Declan Mulholland at the British Film Institute (backup link)
- From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga (Part 3 of 9) on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link) (Including most of Mulholland's unused scene)
