Star Wars’ Most Secretive Deleted Scene Tied Jar Jar Binks to the Empire

Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace had such high expectations that it seemed like there was nothing George Lucas could do to appease the fans, and the film ended up being considered to be a major disappointment. While there were multiple aspects of the story and filmmaking that were divisive, the most significant amount of backlash went to the character of Jar Jar Binks, the clumsy Gungan played by newcomer Ahmed Best. There was a notable lack of Jar Jar in the next two films in the trilogy, as he had only two speaking scenes in Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones and only appeared for a brief cameo in Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith. However, Jar Jar was part of a mysterious deleted scene from Revenge of the Sith that has not been included on any of the home video releases.

Jar Jar Binks Had a Bigger Role in ‘Revenge of the Sith’

According to an interview that Best conducted with the Heroes Journey podcast, Revenge of the Sith included a scene set after the creation of the Galactic Empire in which Jar Jar was thanked by Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) for his role in helping to take down the Jedi Order. Although a plethora of deleted scenes from the first six films in the Star Wars franchise were included on a 2012 Blu-Ray release, the sequence that Best referred to was not among them. Jar Jar has been given a bigger role in some of the subsequent Star Wars comics and novels, but none have mentioned the connection that he shared with Darth Sidious. However, Jar Jar’s potentially villainous role isn’t all that surprising when considering how he was manipulated over the course of the prequel trilogy.

Jar Jar attracted a lot of criticism upon his debut because it seemed implausible that a goofy, rambunctious character would keep getting opportunities, as he is considered to be a hero after the Battle of Naboo in The Phantom Menace. However, Lucas included a fair amount of political commentary in the prequels, and it makes sense that Jar Jar would be made a representative in the Galactic Senate by Palpatine, as they share a home planet. In Attack of the Clones, Jar Jar is manipulated into calling a vote in favor of giving emergency powers to the Supreme Chancellor when he is tasked with taking Padme Amidala’s (Natalie Portman) place in the Senate when she is dispatched home to remain safe. It’s because of this vote that Palpatine is given newfound authority, which allows him to create the Grand Army of the Republic using the Clone Troopers from Kamino. In Revenge of the Sith, he sends out a message to the clones that calls for them to executive “Order 66,” which means that they must kill all of the Jedi.

Jar Jar was obviously not aware of this plot, as he is friends with Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen). However, Palpatine has taken advantage of the greed of the Senate to make himself more powerful, as he convinces them to applaud him when he decides to initiate the Galactic Empire. Since Jar Jar never makes contact with any of the other Jedi after Order 66 is called, it’s possible that he believed the conspiracy Palpatine started about the Jedi Order had attempted to take over the Republic. Jar Jar is also never made aware of the true identity of Darth Vader, and thus believed the story that Palpatine told about how Padme died. The only subsequent detail learned about Jar Jar is that he was exiled by his people for inadvertently helping create the Empire, but the secretive Revenge of the Sith scene might suggest that he had more agency than originally believed.

Star Wars’ Jar Jar Binks Is Actually Way More Complex Than You Realize

It’s not clear how much Lucas’ plans for Jar Jar changed after the reaction to The Phantom Menace, as it’s possible that he was originally intended to have a bigger role before receiving so much hate. However, Jar Jar’s story arc is an important part of the Star Wars saga because he showcases the power of influence that both the dark and light sides of the force have. It’s after Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) praises Jar Jar that he helps to broker the deal between the humans and Gungans in The Phantom Menace, but Palpatine was able to take advantage of his gullibility by convincing him that he was acting in good faith.

There doesn’t seem to be any immediate plans to reveal more deleted scenes from Revenge of the Sith, especially since nothing was announced during the film’s 20th anniversary in 2025. However, Jar Jar’s story still feels unfinished because he hasn’t been given the chance to atone for his mistakes in any of the films or shows. Although Best hasn’t played the character since providing his voice for a few episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, he appeared in the third season of The Mandalorian as a new Jedi character. Given that the Star Wars prequel trilogy has experienced a resurgence in popularity now that those who grew up with the films have become more vocal, there is perhaps some reason to hope that the saga of Jar Jar isn’t quite over.