|
| “ | That's the idea. I've been looking forward to this for a long time. | „ |
| ~ Greedo's last words to Han Solo before his death. |
Greedo is a minor antagonist in the Star Wars franchise. A renowned bounty hunter and male Rodian, Greedo tracked Han Solo to the Mos Eisley Cantina for Jabba the Hutt where he met his ultimate demise. While being a minor villain, his fatal encounter with Han Solo gives audiences a clear impression of what kind of place the planet Tatooine is.
He was portrayed by Paul Blake and voiced by the late Larry Ward.
Biography
The Phantom Menace
In a deleted scene, it was revealed that, as a child, he accused a young Anakin Skywalker of cheating during a podrace and the two got into a fight. Qui-Gon Jinn broke up the fight and Greedo ran off. One of Anakin’s friends Wald told him to watch out.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
| “ | Maclunkey! | „ |
| ~ Greedo's last words in the 2019 cut, and arguably his most famous quote. |
During the Clone Wars, Greedo was a bounty hunter stationed on planet Tatooine. At some point, Greedo was hired by Separatist leader Count Dooku to kidnap Che Amanwe and Chi Eekway, who were the daughters of Baron N. Papanoida, the newly elected chairman of the moon of Pantora after the death of the previous chairman. The reason for the kidnappings was to force Pantora into leaving the Galactic Republic and joining the Separatists along with a Federation blockade. Greedo and his fellow mercenaries were successful in kidnapping both daughters. Greedo held Che Amanwe hostage in Mos Eisley on Tatooine while he incarcerated Chi Eekway on board the Trade Federation ship blockading Pantora.
Chairman Baron Papanoida and his son and oldest child Ion Papanoida tracked Greedo down to Tatooine in Jabba's Palace and the Chairman forced him to reveal the location of his daughters. Greedo took Baron and Ion to Mos Eisley and led them to the Cantina where Che Amanwe was held. Upon arrival, Greedo betrayed the Pantorans and his followers opened fire on them. The Pantorans were successful in rescuing the Chairman's daughter and defeating the mercenaries, but Greedo escaped. Meanwhile, Senator Riyo Chuchi and Padawan Ahsoka Tano rescued Eekway and forced the Federation to cease the blockade.
A New Hope
Shortly before the Battle of Yavin, Greedo rented a small ship and tagged along on the hunt for the Yavin Vassilika. He hob-nobbed with the galaxy's greatest hunters, though he himself was profoundly out of his element. Nevertheless, he had gotten a taste of the trade. Upon his return to Tatooine, Greedo continued working with Jabba the Hutt, securing a contract on Han Solo, with Goa also being involved in the contract. Greedo had encountered Solo twice, demanding payment, but was humiliated both times. He eventually met up with Solo again in a Mos Eisley cantina where Greedo demanded Jabba's cut. Solo, not having that amount of money just yet, was forced to find another solution. Solo prepared his blaster under the table they were sitting at and shot the inexperienced bounty hunter from below. Greedo himself had managed to pull off a shot less than a second before, but missed entirely. Solo then stood up, threw a coin to the bartender, apologizing for the mess, and left the cantina for Docking Bay 94. Although Greedo's death was on Solo's hands, it was actually Greedo's "mentor," Warhog Goa, who should be credited with his demise; Goa had tricked an outmatched Greedo into going against Solo after receiving a payoff from two Rodian bounty hunters who were tracking the young novice. Goa, alongside the Rodian bounty hunters, also bore witness to Greedo's death. Greedo then states that at best, Jabba may only take away Han's ship, the Millennium Falcon, but Han refuses, insulting "Over my dead body". Greedo eagerly accepts that, stating "That's the idea. I've been looking forward to this for a long time" and Han then blasts Greedo away, killing Greedo.
Because of Greedo's failure, Jabba then sent the much more competent and dangerous bounty hunter Boba Fett to go after Han Solo.
Personality
Greedo is a highly arrogant and cocky individual who seems to overestimate himself at the expense of underestimating others, ultimately resulting in his demise at the hands of Han Solo. Antagonistic from a young age, Greedo grew up to be a morally corrupt bounty hunter willing to commit a variety of crimes for the purpose of garnering wealth, status, and power. Greedo’s loyalty to his employer Jabba the Hutt appears to be superficial, however, evidenced by when Greedo states to Han Solo that he is willing to accept a bribe in exchange for letting the young smuggler go (though it is entirely possible that Greedo intended on killing/capturing Han Solo anyway). Greedo’s confidence and self-assurance seems to possess little merit, however, as he continually allows himself to be duped and bested by his adversaries and rivals. Greedo’s naivety results in him failing to see the conspiracy his fellow bounty hunters had plotted against him, as well as him foolishly allowing Han Solo to keep one of his hands concealed under the table during his confrontation with Han at the canteen, resulting in Han reaching for his blaster and killing the mercenary Rodian. When Greedo attempts to shoot Han with his blaster, he misses Han at point-blank range, his atrocious aim revealing his staggering incompetence.
In addition to dying in an embarrassing and undignified manner, it is later revealed that Greedo’s employer, Jabba the Hutt, likely did not care much for the Rodian bounty hunter and merely saw him as a disposable pawn, remarking later to Han Solo that he “fried poor Greedo” in a mocking tone. Jabba the Hutt hiring an incompetent mercenary such as Greedo also reveals how much the crime lord initially underestimated the cunning smuggler. However, Jabba the Hutt later hires the highly skilled and competent bounty hunter Boba Fett (a sharp contrast to Greedo) to deal with Han, showing that Jabba eventually came to view Han Solo and his allies as a serious and legitimate threat.
Relationships
Allies
- Hutts
- Jabba the Hutt
- Jabba's criminal empire
- Bib Fortuna
Enemies
- Rebel Alliance
- Galactic Republic
- Clone Troopers
- Jedi Order
- Galactic Empire
- Han Solo
- Chewbacca
- Lando Calrissian
- Stormtroopers
Trivia
- The 1997 special edition of Star Wars: A New Hope features an infamous scene change in which Greedo is portrayed as shooting before Han and missing. According to George Lucas, he changed the scene because the original version "depicts Solo, the film's supporting protagonist, as a cold-blooded killer". In the 2004 version, Han and Greedo are shown shooting at the same time and in the 2011 version, the entire scene is shortened by multiple frames. The simple scene change resulted in countless articles being created by fans who were ultimately dissatisfied with the change and desired to see it removed. Today, the scene has become so infamous that the phrase "Han shot first" has become an Internet meme.
- In 2016, Greedo's actor Paul Blake stated that he prefers the original cut where Han shot first, so as that it doesn't make Greedo look like a poor aim at shooting. Meanwhile, Harrison Ford stayed neutral about the argument between George Lucas and the viewers over who shot first.
External Links
- Greedo on the Star Wars Wiki
- Greedo (Legends) on the Star Wars Wiki
