Multiple reports suggest Timothy Olyphant has been cast to appear in the upcoming season of Disney Plus’ “The Mandalorioan” — and apparently he will wear Boba Fett’s armor.
But he won’t play Boba Fett.
Olyphant — who has starred on “Deadwood,” “Justified” and “Santa Clarita Diet” — will appear in “The Mandalorian” in an unknown role, according to The Hollywood Reporter. It was unknown at the time if he would play a new character or a returning character.
But new reports suggest he will wear Boba Fett’s armor, SlashFilm reports.
This contradicts other reports that Temuera Morrison will play Boba Fett. Morrison played Jango Fett in “Star Wars: Attack of the Clones,” so it would make sense for him to play Jango’s son, Boba, who is a clone of Jango as revealed in that movie.
So why would Olympant wear Boba Fett’s armor?
It’s because he’ll likely play the character CobbC Vanth, who first appeared in the “Star Wars: Aftermath” book series, the first of which dropped just ahead of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
Here’s SlashFilm’s explanation on Vanth:
“Vanth is the self-appointed sheriff of the Tatooine-based settlement Freetown. He wears a mysterious set of Mandalorian armor that was acquired from Jawas who scavenged the wreckage of Jabba the Hutt’s sail barge shortly after the events of Return of the Jedi. As you may recall, that was the site of a battle where Boba Fett was thrown into the Sarlacc Pit on Tatooine’s Dune Sea. It’s assumed that the Mandalorian armor purchased by Vanth is none other than the infamous green armor formerly worn by one of the galaxy’s most notorious bounty hunters, Boba Fett.”
As Gizmodo explains, Vanth makes a brief appearance in one of the side chapters of the novel. He defends people on Tatooine from villains and criminals.
Regardless, it opens questions about how Olyphant will play into the new series, according to Gizmodo.
“Will he be playing Boba Fett in flashbacks, if Olyphant’s actually Vanth, or someone like him who currently wears his armor, while the actual Boba Fett truly is still digesting in that Sarlacc stomach? Or has Boba indeed survived, and is now rather miffed that someone else is using his armor and his reputation in a way he may not necessarily agree with?”