Arleil Schous, a Defel of advanced age and a fortune hunter by trade, frequented Chalmun's Spaceport Cantina on Tatooine, a desert planet, in the year 0 BBY. It was in this cantina that he observed the bounty hunter Bossk'wassak'Cradossk inquiring about the astromech droid known as 261. Later that year, he was also present when Luke Skywalker, a moisture farmer, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi Master, entered the establishment.
On the occasion of Skywalker and Kenobi's visit, Schous was seated with fellow patrons Hem Dazon, Bom Vimdin, Pons Limbic, and Braconnor Bakiska in one of the cantina's back rooms. He subsequently moved to share a drink of Merenzane Gold with Ketwol and Kardue'sai'Malloc. His aging body was beginning to fail, and Schous was losing his Defel ability to manipulate light and become virtually invisible.
In 0 BBY, Arleil Schous, a Defel engaged in fortune hunting, spent time at Chalmun's Spaceport Cantina, situated within the spaceport of Mos Eisley on the planet Tatooine. During that year, he was observed sharing drinks with a Trandoshan near the entrance when the bounty hunter Bossk'wassak'Cradossk was making inquiries about the astromech droid 261, a rogue unit from the Galactic Empire, inside the cantina.
Later that same year, Schous was present in one of the cantina's back rooms, seated at a table with Hem Dazon, an Arcona; Bom Vimdin, an Advozse; Pons Limbic, a Siniteen; and Braconnor Bakiska, a Stennes Shifter. This was when Luke Skywalker, a moisture farmer, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi Master, entered the establishment seeking a pilot for transport to the planet Alderaan.
Schous then relocated to a table closer to the entrance to meet with Ketwol, a Pacithhip, and Kardue'sai'Malloc, a Devaronian, sharing a jigger of Merenzane Gold. Dice Ibegon, a Lamproid, also joined the group. During an altercation between Skywalker and the criminals Ponda Baba and Cornelius Evazan (Doctor), Skywalker was thrown into the table next to them, leading to Kenobi subduing the criminals.
While in the cantina, Schous was observed wearing a tan jacket.
The initial appearance of Arleil Schous was in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, a film from the original trilogy that premiered on May 25, 1977. His inclusion occurred during supplementary filming for the cantina scene, conducted on a sound stage at Dovington's Hollywood studio between January 24 and 25, 1977. Rick Baker, the creature designer, crafted Arleil Schous' mask from a pre-existing werewolf Halloween mask of his own design. This same mask, largely unaltered, was later utilized for the character Lak Sivrak, but for Schous, Baker modified the mask's face, added ears, and incorporated glowing eyeballs.
The mask's genesis was for "The Thing in the Attic," a Halloween show presented by Bob Burns in 1974. Baker donned the mask during the show, portraying a demon summoned by a possessed girl, drawing inspiration from The Exorcist. Due to constraints of time and budget, the mask was repurposed for Star Wars, with the character initially referred to as "Bat-Demon Guy," "Wolfe," or "Wolfman" during production. In the film's original release, Schous was visible in a second cantina shot. However, George Lucas, the director, found the mask's off-the-shelf nature bothersome, as its creation occurred outside his direct control. Consequently, the Special Edition re-release replaced this shot with a close-up of Melas.
Within the current Star Wars canon, Schous was first formally identified in the 2015 reference book Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need to Know. His name originated in the Star Wars Legends continuity, appearing first on a card in the 1998 "Official Tournament Sealed Deck" for the Star Wars Customizable Card Game by Decipher, Inc.. In Legends, the Defels' ability to bend light was attributed to Schous' obscured presence in the film. However, due to well-lit depictions of the Defel, Decipher rationalized the discrepancy by stating that Schous was losing this ability due to his age.