Behold one of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker’s Best Effects
Now that Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has closed out the 9-film Skywalker Saga, it’ll be some time until we visit that galaxy far, far away—December 2022 to be exact. Now, then, is the time for a bit of galactic reflection. With The Rise of Skywalker nabbing 3 Oscars—for Best Sound Editing, Best Visual Effects, and Best Original Score—there is still time to celebrate the final installment in the saga. One of those parts is without a doubt Babu Frik, the little Anzellan droidsmith who has a small but crucial role in the film. Yet Babu Frik is not a visual effect; he’s a work of handcrafted creature creation and puppetry. Frik is the creation of creature effects supervisor Neal Scanlan and his team, who built this nine-inch rod puppet into one of the galaxy’s newest heroes. In a new video, Frik’s can-do spirit and winning charisma are evident in his every little move and sound. Frik is responsible for breaking through a prohibitive code in C-3P0’s head to translate the Sith language, crucial to their mission in taking down the First Order.
Babu Frik’s voice is supplied by the talented Scottish actress Shirley Henderson—she voiced Moaning Myrtle in the first two Harry Potter films. While Frik’s language is indecipherable to us Earthlings, he still sounds fantastic when he speaks, and his catchphrase of “hey-hey!” became a near-instant meme.
hey heeeeeeeeeey to babu frik and no one else pic.twitter.com/RHAebisR2m
— Gene Park (@GenePark) December 21, 2019
We’ll find out if The Rise of Skywalker nabs any Oscars when the telecast airs on February 9, yet we already know that Babu Frik is a big winner.
If you’ve got a hankering for more Star Wars, well, we’ve got a lot. Here’s J.J. Abrams on why he made Rey [SPOILER ALERT]. Check out these three new behind-the-scene images. If you don’t mind potential spoilers, check out this new clip featuring Kylo Ren and a certain legendary character of yore. Behold some epic lightsaber action. These 8 new photos include the mysterious Knights of Ren. Check out Rey rocking the double-edged lightsaber, glimpse these four new photos (including the flying Stormtrooper), watch this clip of Leia holding a lightsaber (and more), or this clip of flying Stormtroopers, read about Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and writer/director J.J. Abrams meeting with George Lucas, watch the Knights of Ren and a Sith Trooper in action, behold the new character posters, read this helpful Star Wars timeline, watch the latest TV spot, read our breakdown of the final trailer, watch the final trailer itself, read our break down of a bunch of new images, and a have look at Rey and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver)’s complicated relationship.
Featured image: Babu Frik, a tiny Anzellan droidsmith. Courtesy Lucasfilm/Walt Disney Studios.
