Beru Whitesun Lars


Beru Whitesun Lars, originally named Beru Whitesun (at birth), was a human female native to the planet Tatooine. She entered into marriage with Owen Lars, who was the stepbrother of Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi Knight recognized as the Chosen One. Together, Beru and Owen raised Anakin's son, Luke, following Anakin's descent to the dark side of the force and the death of his mother during childbirth.

In the year 0 BBY, the Lars family acquired two droids that unknowingly contained the stolen plans for the Death Star, a superweapon utilized by the Imperial forces. Stormtroopers of the Empire located the droid at the Lars' residence, where they proceeded to interrogate and ultimately kill both Beru and her husband. Upon learning of his family's demise, Skywalker departed Tatooine with Kenobi to begin his Jedi training, joining the Rebel Alliance and playing a crucial role in the destruction of the Death Star during the Battle of Yavin.

Biography

Early life

As a young woman, Beru Whitesun harbored a dream of establishing her own cafe or restaurant within Anchorhead. This aspiration stemmed from her participation in a cooking class during her school years, where the teacher lauded her blue-milk cheese as the finest he had ever tasted. The instructor's encouragement, suggesting she was born to create blue-milk cheese, fueled her ambition.

Before the Empire

During a supply expedition to Mos Espa, Whitesun made a stop at Watto's junk shop to repair her portable nav. It was there that she encountered Shmi Skywalker, a slave of Watto, who skillfully fixed the device at a low cost. Later, Whitesun facilitated the introduction of Shmi to Cliegg Lars, a moisture farmer, who soon after freed and married Shmi. Whitesun assisted Skywalker in locating and deprogramming the chips of former slaves, including Skywalker using her scanner, the deprogrammer. Eventually, Whitesun developed feelings for Owen Lars, Cliegg Lars' son, leading to a romantic relationship. Shortly before the outbreak of the Clone Wars, Shmi Skywalker Lars, Owen's stepmother, was kidnapped by Tusken Raiders, an event that brought Anakin Skywalker, Shmi's son, and Senator Padmé Amidala, to the Lars moisture farm, where they were received by Cliegg. Skywalker arrived too late to save his mother, who passed away in his arms, prompting him to slaughter the Tuskens. Upon his return, a funeral was held at the farm. During the funeral, Whitesun served blue milk and cheese to everyone. Whitesun continued to support others on Tatooine working to free enslaved people. She fed and comforted newly freed people and their families.

Kenobi hands over an infant Luke to Beru.

Three years later, Whitesun had already married Owen and taken on his last name. Both alone after Cliegg's death, Owen and Beru decided to have a child, but problems of infertility precluded them to have one, leading them to consider seeing one of the fertility droids at Mos Eisley. As the galactic conflict drew to a close, Beru and Owen became the guardians of their new nephew, Luke Skywalker, after his father turned to the dark side of the Force and became Darth Vader and his mother died in childbirth. Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Jedi Master and friend of Anakin, delivered infant Luke to the Lars homestead. After receiving Luke, Beru told Owen that they would be raising his stepbrother's son as their own.

Raising Skywalker

Run-in with the Inquisitorius

For the next nineteen years, Lars and her husband raised Skywalker like a son. Lars would often defend Skywalker's interests against Owen, who was overprotective of him out of fear that he would follow in Anakin's footsteps and try to become a Jedi Knight. In 9 BBY, Luke and Owen carried out work at the homestead, all the while being observed from a distance by Kenobi, who left some spare parts for a toy T-16 skyhopper for Luke. As they worked, however, Luke ran away from the labor, climbed on top the homestead, and pretended to podrace, all while Owen and Beru looked for Luke. Upon spotting Luke, Beru laughed while Owen expressed disappointment.

Reva attacks Owen and Beru

Shortly after, during his rescue of Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan, Luke's twin sister, Kenobi had set off the wrath of the former Inquisitor Reva Sevander, who now wanted to kill Luke. Upon being told by Owen, Beru asked how Sevander had found out where they lived, and Owen admitted that he did not know, adding that Kenobi was gone. He then told Beru that they needed to leave the homestead, but Beru asserted that she would not leave her home. Owen told her that, if they stayed, they would need help, but Beru told her husband that they were enough. She then pulled out two blaster rifles from the homestead, tossed one to Owen, and the two went to position themselves for Sevander's attack.

That night, lying to Luke that tusken raiders were on the hunt along the Jundland Wastes, Owen instructed Luke to run if anything happened. Beru then shared an embrace with Luke, and holding back tears, told her nephew that everything would be all right. Owen and Beru then left Luke to prepare for Sevander's impending arrival. Upon her arrival, Owen and Beru began shooting at Sevander, who dodged the shots with her lightsaber. Owen then faced Sevander alone, but when she knocked him down, he called to his wife, informing her that Sevander was on her way to her. Beru managed to distract Sevander long enough for Luke to escape the homestead, but was swiftly knocked down by the former Inqusitor. With Sevander gone, Owen and Beru exited the homestead and began desperately calling out for Luke. Just then, Kenobi returned from his confrontation with Darth Vader and landed by the homestead. Beru relayed the news to Kenobi, who went to look in the Dune Sea but was swiftly called back over by Beru, who saw a weeping Sevander carry Luke back to the homestead. While Kenobi consoled Sevander, Owen and Beru carried Luke back home.

The Great Drought and beyond

A year after the Great Drought, Owen was abducted by the Wookiee bounty hunter Krrsantan for unpaid water taxes to the Hutt crime lord Jabba Desilijic Tiure. Lars sought after her husband armed with a rifle, telling the young Skywalker to stay safe within the homestead.

Proud aunt

Beru trying to convince her husband that Luke cannot stay on the farm forever.

In 2 BBY, Kenobi, following a brief confrontation with the former Sith apprentice Maul, visited the Lars moisture farm but watched from a distance. Kenobi heard Lars calling out to a seventeen-year-old Luke from within the homestead, and saw Skywalker running back toward the house against a binary sunset.

By 0 BBY, Skywalker, now nineteen, wanted to explore the wider galaxy, having never left Tatooine. Though Owen refused numerous times to let Skywalker go when he wished to leave home and join the Academy, Lars convinced her husband to let Skywalker go after staying on for only one more season. This decision coincided with the aftermath of the theft of the Death Star plans and Darth Vader's capture of Princess Leia Organa over Tatooine.

Death

Beru and her husband lay dead at the hands of the Empire.

Around this time, Skywalker and Owen purchased two droids from a Jawa sandcrawler that stopped by their homestead. These two droids were the protocol droid C-3PO and the astromech droid R2-D2, who were being hunted by the Empire. Before dinner, Skywalker cleaned the two droids in the garage where he found a message from Organa meant to be received by Kenobi. Skywalker told his aunt and uncle about this recording at the dinner table which prompted discussion about the relationship between Kenobi and Skywalker's father. Owen also discussed Skywalker staying another season on the farm, which Lars intervened and tried to reason with her husband that Skywalker shouldn't stay on the farm forever. In this conversation she likened Skywalker with his father, an idea that Owen was not fond of. After dinner Skywalker returned to the garage and found that R2-D2 had fled the homestead. The next morning Skywalker told Lars that he'd had some chores to do and went with C-3PO to look for R2-D2, who was secretly carrying the stolen Death Star plans. A concerned Owen could not find Luke, who was supposed to have the two droid to the south ridge by midday. He spoke to his wife about it, who told him that Skywalker had left early to complete some chores and that he had taken the two droids with him. While Skywalker was away, however, Imperial stormtroopers, who were searching for plans located in R2-D2's memory banks, were led to the Lars homestead by Owen's purchase of the droids from the Jawas. A squad of stormtroopers killed Beru and Owen and burned their home.

Post-mortem

After her passing from the living world, and knowing that both she and her husband were dead, Beru Whitesun Lars reflected on Skywalker's significance in her life. She remembered her bustling around the kitchen, serving blue milk, and trying to convince Owen to allow their nephew to attend the Imperial Academy. Speculating that their lives might have been spared had Owen permitted Skywalker to leave, Lars recalled various moments of her existence. Ultimately, she found solace in the knowledge that Skywalker had departed with Kenobi, encountered Organa, destroyed the Death Star battle station, and saved the galaxy.

Legacy

Despite the recent loss of his adoptive family, Skywalker did not grieve until soon after the battle, when his love interest, Nakari Kelen, was killed on the planet Omereth. Kelen's death provided Skywalker a moment to consider his losses, and he wept upon thinking of his uncle and aunt. Skywalker later returned to Tatooine to recover Kenobi's journal, which contained stories of the Jedi's few encounters with the Lars family.

In the weeks after the Battle of Yavin, Darth Vader searched for the pilot responsible for destroying the Death Star, discovering that the pilot was the son he never knew he had. Vader, accompanied by Doctor Chelli Lona Aphra, revisited the abandoned homestead and followed Skywalker's trail. While assessing the destruction, Aphra speculated that Skywalker might have never left Tatooine, had his family been spared.

Personality and traits

Beru Whitesun Lars possessed a warm and affectionate demeanor, contrasting with her husband Owen's gruff and stern nature. She consistently sought opportunities to pamper Skywalker, regarding him as her own son in every way except by name, and showering him with love.

Lars was a human female with a height of 1.65 meters. Her physical characteristics included brown hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion.

Equipment

During the Clone Wars, Beru favored wearing light robes in a variety of brown and blue shades.

Behind the scenes

Shelagh Fraser as Beru

The character of Beru Lars has been present in some form since the rough draft of "The Star Wars" in 1974. In this early concept, Beru and Owen Lars are portrayed as anthropologists, and a character named "Clieg Whitsun" also exists. By the 1975 version of the script, the Larses are depicted as owning a moisture ranch, but they are the parents of Skywalker's cousin, Leia. A later revision established their role as Luke Skywalker's Aunt and Uncle, with Beru protecting Skywalker from Owen's occasional outbursts of anger. The idea of the Larses being killed by Imperial stormtroopers was integrated into the story by the early 1976 version.

British actress Shelagh Fraser was chosen for the role of Aunt Beru in Star Wars. Fraser's initial day of filming took place on April 1, 1976, while the scenes depicting the Lars' charred remains were shot a few days earlier. During the film's post-production phase, sound mixer Derek Ball visited Fraser's residence to record additional dialogue. The mono soundmix of the first release of Star Wars featured different takes of Beru's lines. However, all subsequent home video sound mixes utilize the same take as the initial theatrical Dolby mixes.

Bonnie Piesse as Beru

On July 7, 2000, StarWars.com announced that sixteen-year-old Australian actress Bonnie Maree Piesse would be playing the role of a younger Beru in Episode II. Piesse would approach Beru as being a little shy, the idea being that it was the introduction of Luke into her life that matured her. George Lucas wanted to make sure that Beru's costume was similar to the one worn in the first film to help establish a visual connection. Her wardrobe was also partially inspired by that of Skywalker's friend Camie in A New Hope. The first time fans would hear the name "Beru Whitesun" was in September 2000, when Lucasfilm began registering domain names featuring names of characters and other things from the upcoming film. This same month, Piesse and the crew were filming the Tatooine scenes in Tunisia. Lucas also filmed part of a scene for Episode III in which a stand-in actor playing Obi-Wan delivers baby Luke to Owen, played by Joel Edgerton. However, this would be changed during the Episode III shoot in September 2003. Lucas filmed Ewan McGregor handing the baby to Piesse, with Owen being played by a stand-in—Edgerton would be shot and added in almost a year later. Lucas made this change because he "felt it would be better if Luke were handed over to a woman." Andrea Wagner-Barton, editor Roger Barton's wife, served as a stand-in for Piesse in the scene where Beru holds Luke, as their infant son Aidan was playing Luke, though Bonnie did play Beru in the scene when Obi-Wan hands Luke over to her.

Deleted scenes

A shot of Beru filling a pitcher with blue milk from a dispenser in the kitchen, a part of the kitchen not shown in the film, did not make the final cut of the 1977 Star Wars. A production still also shows that the dinner scene was shot, or at least rehearsed, with the family members in different seats.

A more substantial Beru scene was cut from Attack of the Clones: after Anakin Skywalker returns to the farm with his mother's body, Beru helps Amidala prepare a meal, featuring blue milk, for Skywalker, having a short conversation with Amidala about Naboo and her own reluctance to travel. Nonetheless, this scene does appear in the film's novelization. A shot of Beru and the Larses waving goodbye to Anakin and Padmé was also shot but not used in the final film.

Obi-Wan Kenobi television series

Beru Lars character poster for Obi-Wan Kenobi

During Piesse's break from acting after escaping from the cult NXIVM, she received a message from Deborah Chow, the director of the Obi-Wan Kenobi television series. After realizing the message was for casting, Piesse joined a call from Portugal and Chow convinced her to return to the role of Beru Lars. Chow was very excited to bring Edgerton and Piesse back to play Owen and Beru Lars, respectively, and she said their return was part of what made the series special. Piesse got to embody Lars in a different way, and her portrayal was a middle space between Lars starting to be a mother and Shelagh Fraser's portrayal in the original trilogy. Piesse felt like she did not need to try too hard to embody Lars because it was a character that "just fits so easily." Piesse prepared by healing, nourishing, and strengthening herself to have all the energy she needed to be on set. On March 29, 2021, Lucasfilm confirmed Piesse as a cast member of the live-action Disney+ television series Obi-Wan Kenobi. Piesse has said she would like to reprise her role in a second season or an adjacent film for Obi-Wan Kenobi.

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