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Watto

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Watto
Star Warscharacter
Watto as he appears inStar Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.
First appearanceThe Phantom Menace(1999)
Created byGeorge Lucas
Voiced by
In-universe information
SpeciesToydarian
GenderMale
OccupationJunk store proprietor
HomeworldToydaria

Wattois a fictional character in theStar Warsfranchise,featured in the filmsThe Phantom MenaceandAttack of the Clones.He iscomputer-generatedand is voiced byvoice actorAndy Secombe.He is a mean-tempered, greedyToydarian,and owner of a second-hand goods store in Mos Espa on the planetTatooine.Among Watto's belongings are theslavesShmi Skywalkerand her son,Anakin.He acquires them after winning apodracingbet with Gardulla the Hutt, and he puts them both to work in his store. Anakin demonstrates an incredible aptitude for equipment repair, and Watto decides to profit from it by having the boy fix various broken equipment in the store. He eventually loses Anakin in a podracing bet withQui-Gon Jinnwhen he bets on a competitor,Sebulba,who is defeated by Anakin.

Concept and creation

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George Lucaswas specific with theconcept artteam about what features he envisioned for Watto. Design directorDoug Chiangdescribed the character's design as "this conglomeration of odd things that really didn't fit, but that in the end gave him a very unique and powerful personality".[1]Lucas dismissed concepts including a pudgy parrot byTerryl Whitlatch(though Whitlatch recalls one of her designs influencing the direction for the character)[2]and a four-armed beast with a cigar by Iain Craig.[1]Chiang repurposed the head from one of his earlyNeimoidiandesigns, featuring a hooked trunk and crooked teeth,[3]and addedhummingbirdwings, meeting Lucas's approval. Additionally, Chiang gave Watto a vest and a tool belt, only asking for webbed feet and pants. Modeling supervisor Geoff Campell was skeptical of having a chubby alien with wings, so it was imagined that the Toydarians are filled with gas, with the wings propelling them instead of supporting their weight. Animation supervisorRob Colemanrealized that the alien's teeth would need some modification, as the craggy teeth made lip-syncing difficult. To solve the problem, Coleman broke off one of Watto's incisors, giving him a "corner-of-the-mouth" vernacular. His expressions were based on video footage of voice actorAndy Secombe,photographs of Coleman imitating the character, and modeler Steve Alpin saying Watto's lines to a mirror.[1]Alec Guinnessperforming asFagininOliver Twistwas used as an influence in the character's development.[4]The sound of his wings flapping is a looped recording of sound designerBen Burttopening and closing anumbrella.

Appearances

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Watto first appears inStar Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace,the first title chronologically in theStar Warsseries. He has both an ability for haggling and a resistance to the "Jedi mind trick", a technique used to persuade people. He is both a junk dealer and slave owner on the planetTatooine,possessing bothShmi Skywalkerand her sonAnakin.When challenged to a bet for Anakin's freedom byQui-Gon Jinnalong with what he needs to repair his damaged ship, Watto agrees due to him refusing to take Republic change. After Anakin beatsSebulba(whom Watto bets on), a competing racer that he challenged throughout the race he participated in, he was let go. However, Watto (who believes Qui-Gon scammed him) at first considers calling off the bet, but gives in when Qui-Gon threatens to tell the Hutts of his double-crossing. Watto makes a final appearance in the sequelEpisode II – Attack of the Clones,which takes place 10 years afterThe Phantom Menace.The now-adult Anakin returns to Tatooine to find his mother. Searching Mos Espa, he finds Watto sitting outside the shop at a small stall. They reunite on somewhat amicable terms and Watto tells Anakin that he sold Shmi some years ago to a moisture farmer namedCliegg Lars,who freed and married her. Watto then takes Anakin andPadméto look through his records to find her.

Watto makes multiple further appearances in theStar WarsExpanded Universe;one such appearance details his time on his home planet before he came to Tatooine during a war. It also tells how he sustained his broken tusk and disabled leg. He later learns his business savvy from theJawas,native to the planet Tatooine. In thenon-canonicalStar Warscomic bookStar Wars: Visionaries,Watto is shown to have been killed byDarth Maul(whose appearance here predates the canonical revelation of his survival of the events ofThe Phantom Menace) during Maul's process of tracking down his nemesisObi-Wan Kenobi,to gain vengeance for his defeat during the Battle of Naboo.

His son Blatto makes an appearance in the non-canonical television specialPhineas and Ferb: Star Wars.

There has been an uncommon amount of Watto merchandise made over the years since 1999. In 2019, the WattoFunko Popwas first realized at the 2019 Galactic Con as an Exclusive. Watto has also been produced as aLegofigure and featured in theLegoStar Warsvideo games, in addition to numerous other appearances in the form of collectibles and other merchandising.

Reception

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Editors forIGNranked Watto 78th in their list of Top 100Star Warscharacters. They wrote that he was "one of the most confusing scientific anomalies" due to "the idea that a creature so potbellied is able to stay afloat for so long". They added that he was "no prince" for his unscrupulous deals.[5] In the bookThe Holy Family and Its Legacy,author Albrecht Koschorke discusses the presence of "The Holy Family" inThe Phantom Menace,stating that while there was no "solicitous guardian watching over the mother and the holy child," Watto acts in a similar position as a "man who possessespatriarchalpowers without being the father. "[6]

Allegations of antisemitism

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It has been suggested that the character is offensive because of his perceived similarities to astereotypical Jew,having a large hooked nose, beady eyes, unkempt facial hair, speaking in a gravelly voice, and being portrayed as greedy and covetous.J. HobermanofThe Village Voicecalled him "the most blatant ethnic stereotype" due to his hooked nose.[7]Bruce Gottlieb ofSlate magazinecriticized him as well, comparing his character to theantisemiticnotion that the Jewish race is "behind the slave trade".[8]Patricia J. WilliamsofThe Nationstated that Watto was also described as astereotype of Arabs,but that he was "more comprehensively anti-Semitic—both anti-Arab and anti-Jew."[9]She added that Watto reminded her of an "anti-Semitic caricature published inViennaat the turn of the 20th century. "[6]

Jane Prettyman ofAmerican Reviewnoted that after leaving the theater, she heard two young boys describe him as "that weird little Jew guy with wings". Prettyman described his depiction as "not at all subtle", and said that "it can be counted on to flush out already-formed Jew-haters among young audiences and give them permission to continue their hatred out loud."[10]

Others have disagreed with this interpretation.[11]Andrew Howe states that Watto's "nose seems less a cultural referent to Shylock or Fagin than to an elephant's trunk".[12]Others have described Watto's accent as Italian, and not Jewish.[13][14]

Appearances in other media

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Crazy Wattois a two-minute-longfan filmthat made its debut on theInternetin 2000. The film is aspoofof used car dealadsshown ontelevision,[15]featuring Watto. He offers up for sale familiar objects such as anX-wing.[16]The film played at the2005 Cannes Film Festival,[17]and is a popular fan film at manyscience fiction conventions.The film was originally hosted byTheForce.Net,[18]but is now part ofThe Official Star Wars Fan Film AwardsonAtomFilms.

ActorGriffin Newmanportrays a version of the character as the co-host onThe George Lucas Talk Show,where he is the cantankerous, somewhat prankish sidekick toConnor Ratliff’sGeorge Lucas.Newman has performed the character onstage and over numerous streaming performances, often clad in a tight blue rubber costume.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^abc"Watto's Character Development – From Concept to CG".StarWars. June 17, 1999. Archived fromthe originalon November 12, 2007.RetrievedApril 5,2009.
  2. ^Bouzereau, Laurent;Duncan, Jody (1999).Star Wars: The Making of Episode I – The Phantom Menace.New York: Ballantine. p. 17.ISBN978-0-345-43119-6.
  3. ^Bresman, Jonathan (1999).The Art of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.New York: Del Rey. p. 155.ISBN978-0-345-43108-0.
  4. ^Silberman, Steve (May 1999)."G Force: George Lucas fires up the next generation of Star Warriors".Wired.Vol. 7, no. 5.Archivedfrom the original on April 10, 2014.RetrievedJuly 12,2009.
  5. ^"Watto".IGN Entertainment, Inc.Archived fromthe originalon 15 August 2010.Retrieved18 May2011.
  6. ^abKoschorke, Albrecht (2003).The Holy Family and Its Legacy: Religious Imagination from the Gospels to Star Wars.Translated by Dunlap, Thomas.Columbia University Press.p. 183.ISBN9780231127561.Retrieved27 February2015.
  7. ^Hoberman, J. (May 19–25, 1999)."All Droid Up".The Village Voice.Archived fromthe originalon 9 July 2016.Retrieved25 February2016.
  8. ^Gottlieb, Bruce (May 27, 1999)."The Merchant of Menace".Slate.Archivedfrom the original on 30 October 2005.Retrieved11 June2006.
  9. ^https:// thenation /article/archive/racial-ventriloquism/tnamp/
  10. ^Prettyman, Jane (June 3, 1999)."George Lucas serves up anti-Semitic stereotype in Star Wars Episode I".American Review.Archived fromthe originalon May 12, 2006.Retrieved11 June2006.
  11. ^Kempshall, Chris (2022).The History and Politics of Star Wars Death Stars and Democracy.Taylor & Francis.
  12. ^Douglas Brode and Leah Deyneka, Sex, Politics, and Religion in Star Wars: An Anthology, Lanham, Scarecrow Press, 2012, p.20
  13. ^Cocca, Carolyn (2018).Superwomen Gender, Power, and Representation.Bloomsbury Publishing.p. 119.
  14. ^Canepari, Michela (2022).A New Paradigm for Translators of Literary and Non-Literary Texts.Brill. p. 85.
  15. ^Pickle, Betsy (May 16, 2005)."'Crazy Watto' striking deals at Cannes ".Knoxville News Sentinel.Archived fromthe originalon August 28, 2010.RetrievedJuly 9,2019.
  16. ^""CRAZY WATTO" review ".RunLeiaRun.February 23, 2003.RetrievedJuly 9,2019.
  17. ^Ball, Ryan (May 12, 2005)."Star Wars Fans to Play Cannes".Animation Magazine.RetrievedJuly 9,2019.
  18. ^"TFN FanFilms - Short Films - Crazy Watto".TheForce.Net.RetrievedJuly 9,2019.
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