Declan Mulholland, an actor originating from Belfast, was born in December of 1932 and passed away on June 29 of 1999. He is known for portraying Jabba the Hutt in segments that were ultimately removed from the 1977 debut of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.
Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland during December of 1932, Declan Mulholland is remembered for his role as Jabba the Hutt. The scenes he filmed were excised from the initial 1977 theatrical release of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.
In the footage featuring Mulholland as Jabba, the character was depicted as a portly Human figure clad in a thick fur coat. George Lucas expressed that his original concept involved an alien creature for Jabba, but the special effects capabilities at the time were insufficient to replace Mulholland effectively. In 1997, the Special Edition versions of the film reincorporated and modified the original scene, substituting Mulholland with a computer-generated version of Jabba.
Mulholland's Jabba appearance has been adapted to represent other characters within the Star Wars mythos. Pablo Hidalgo drew inspiration from Mulholland's portrayal to create Opun Mcgrrrr in his 1996 short story, "Spare Parts." The 2013 Topps Star Wars Illustrated trading card series utilized Mulholland's likeness for Heater, Jabba's henchman. Heater had taken Jabba's place in a revised version of Mulholland's original scene, which was adapted for the 1981 radio drama "The Han Solo Solution." In the 2021 comic book Star Wars 16, an unnamed member belonging to the Son-tuul Pride syndicate was visually modeled after Mulholland.
Despite his most well-known role being cut, Mulholland enjoyed a prolific acting career, accumulating over fifty credits in both films and British television productions between 1962 and 1997.
Mulholland shared the screen with fellow Star Wars performers Jack Purvis and Kenny Baker in the film Time Bandits. Notably, his costume in this movie bore a striking resemblance to the one he wore while portraying "Jabba."
- From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga
- " Around the Galaxy " — Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 9
- " Renewing the Universe " — Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 10
- " Star FX: Shades of Jabba " — Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 11
- " Scouting the Galaxy " — Star Wars Insider 46
- The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film
- Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga – The Official Collector's Edition
- Declan Mulholland at the Internet Movie Database
- Landis, Harry (27 July 1999). "Obituary – Declan Mulholland" in The Guardian . Retrieved June 6, 2014.
- Declan Mulholland at the British Film Institute (backup link)
- From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga (Part 3 of 9) on the official Star Wars YouTube channel (backup link) (Including most of Mulholland's unused scene)