Leilani Shiu: Being a Jawa

The Jawas are arguably the characters that we visually identify the most with Star Wars. First appearing in the original 1977 movie, the passionate scavengers have been featured in several mediums, let it be the Prequels, video games, books, comics, and recently the Disney+ era of the franchise. None of the performances have been officially credited until Season Two of The Mandalorian, where actress Leilani Shiu made her fourth appearance in the series in Chapter 9: The Marshal. Fabio Fiori recently attended Charlie’s Comic Con in Fort Myers, Florida to capture the actress’ experience portraying several Jawas in The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and finally Obi-Wan Kenobi as Teeka. “My journey started in The Mandalorian Season One. I shot the first two days and then they wanted me the following week, but because I work in the music industry and was on Janet Jackson’s tour, I couldn’t work. So, that’s how my daughter Ariel got introduced. I asked [Lucasfilm], ‘Please don’t fire me [laughs]! Can my daughter fill in for me? She’s a little person like me, same size, she could fit the costume,” Leilani Shiu shared.

Since then, mother and daughter have embarked on their Jawa journey together, even branching off the scavenger role and appearing in the background as town vendors in Chapter 12: The Siege. Leilani also portrayed a Chadra-Fan in The Book of Boba Fett Chapter 2: The Tribes of Tatooine. Both actresses grew up with Star Wars, Leilani sharing how she loved Princess Leia and the droids as a child and Ariel recalling playing with action figures gifted by her uncle. Leilani Shiu said, “We always mess around with each other on set. Jokes aside, seeing my daughter playing a Jawa and getting to experience traveling together around comic cons, it’s something a lot of people in the industry don’t really get. It’s fun!”

So far, The Mandalorian Chapter 2: The Child was the episode with the most (off-world) Jawa presence. Leilani Shiu recalls driving the iconic Sandcrawler and having a fun moment with the Mandalorian stunt double, Brendan Wayne: “I had some general direction from Rick [Famuyiwa], but I mostly improvised with the controls. It was such a fun scene the way they have it set up. Mando could barely fit in it and then you got us, we could walk around a little space easily. [Brendan Wayne] is all crunched in and we also had Grogu with us. It’s an iconic scene, you know? Brendan and I became really good friends … He takes care of us, so it’s almost like having a dad on set.”

The Book of Boba Fett Chapter 5 included one of the funniest scenes in all Star Wars. Amy Sedaris who plays Peli Motto, the scrappy proprietor of Hangar 3-5 in the Mos Eisley Spaceport, has a hilarious interaction with the Mandalorian and a pair of Jawas, sharing that she dated one while speaking fluent Jawaese in order to bargain for some parts for the bounty hunter’s new ship. Leilani Shiu clearly remembers shooting that scene with Sedaris, Wayne, and her daughter like it was today: “[Amy Sedaris] is one of my favorite comedians. We couldn’t see behind the mask, so Amy was pampering us, you know holding our hands, fanning us to make sure we’re not dying under the costume since we were so hot, and she’s like, ‘Dang, is this what Jawa pampering looks like? Can I get a spa day? Can I get a manicure too?’ She is funny, I really love her. I’m glad that we got paired up with her.”

Leilani Shiu’s journey in a galaxy far, far away continued in Obi-Wan Kenobi, this time performing as Teeka, the first Jawa character with a name that was credited in Star Wars. The scene is one of the few comedic reliefs of the series, an interaction between the Jawa and Ben Kenobi once again bargaining for spare parts and a toy (the iconic T-16 Skyhopper) that will be later be gifted to young Luke Skywalker. “We shot the scene during the pandemic. [Ewan McGregor] was very cautious because his wife was having a baby. I didn’t know about it until later. At first he was scared when he had to give me the credits in my hand, but eventually we figured it out and he got comfortable with me, then opened up to me and so a good relationship started between us. Afterwards, I was wrapping up the day in my trailer, and when Ariel and I walked out we saw him, Hayden [Christensen], Moses [Ingram], and Jimmy [Smits] pulling up in the golf cart. He got off and said, ‘Leilani, you did a great job today. It’s great working with you. I can’t wait to see you tomorrow,’ then he gave us both a big hug. We were both so surprised … he was so nice,” Leilani Shiu reflected.

The actress ended the interview sharing her experience of touring around comic cons to represent the Jawas and meet with fans from all over the globe: “My experience at comic cons has been amazing, especially becoming an honored member of the 501st … they quickly became a family. Every comic con we go to they are there to welcome us. It feels special, it feels like I’m home. I’ve never been to Fort Myers, so coming here and having the 501st here means a lot to us.”

The Jawa adventures around comic cons continue, so make sure to follow Leilani Shiu and Ariel Shiu on Instagram to stay up to date with upcoming events!

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