Peter Mayhew has always been Chewbacca, but in The Force Awakens, he had a little help from Joonas Suotamo. Now, at 72 and his health declining, Mayhew is stepping aside for Suotamo.
I'm ecstatic. It's official. And here is my statement to this terrific piece of news https://t.co/a1DPsNDb2P pic.twitter.com/r4EUZ2r17V
— Joonas Suotamo (@JoonasSuotamo) February 21, 2017
It sounds like Mayhew may suit up for a scene or two in The Last Jedi, which is certainly going to spark many “WAS THAT MAYHEW IN THAT SCENE?!?!?!” comments. It’ll be like everyone debating whether or not Daniel Craig was that Stormtrooper in The Force Awakens. Or maybe Daisey Ridley will just tell us which scene was Mayhew.
My guess is that Suotamo will spend a lot of time grieving in the new Star Wars movie.
Now, let’s all celebrate Mayhew’s work as Chewbacca by watching this awesome supercuts of just Chewbacca scenes from the original episodes: