Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson’s character in Star Wars) came to us in a time of great controversy. He was Master of the Jedi High Council across what can only be described as the most discredited and collectively hated Star Wars films of all time. Most diehard fans were not happy with the prequels. And around the age of 16 when I became more educated about the Star Wars canon universe, I finally understood why. The prequel films are 100 percent the worst body of work in the franchise. But there’s one thing that cannot be disputed – Mace Windu was the best part of all of them.
Mace Windu is a character that defied all convention.
Windu was originally written in several different incarnations as a character that would appear in the original trilogy, but it never worked. George Lucas finally found a home for him in the prequels as the Jedi Master we know today.
Mace Windu (much like Mason Betha) changed the game forever. One of the best things about the him is how much unapologetic blackness (aka sauce) was dripping off Samuel Jackson’s performance. He even told George Lucas that if he was going to do the films, his lightsaber needed to be purple, breaking canon for the Star Wars film universe. Mace Windu is the only Jedi to have a lightsaber that color, and all the others only get two choices – blue or green. He even used a fighting style that was usually reserved for the Sith (the dark side), but Windu was able to master it without being turned evil. Plus, until he came along, all we had was Lando.
Windu is in the running for the strongest Jedi Master ever.
In the movies, Mace Windu is regarded the best lightsaber duelist alive. But if you searched Reddit threads and message boards (like me) you’d know that it’s widely believed that Jackson’s character was the strongest Jedi on the council. Yoda is the de facto leader of the group, but that could be due to his experience and wisdom. When both characters fight Senator Palpatine (Darth Sidious) in Revenge of the Sith, Windu gave him the business, but Anakin betrayed him. Yoda had a much harder time keeping up with the Sith lord.
And according to Samuel L. Jackson (and George Lucas), he’s still alive.
During an IMDB Twitter chat with Jackson, a fan asked about why his character had to die. This was his response.
.@starwarsgirl1 #IMDbAskSamJackson pic.twitter.com/aSZ0uwHUpz
— Samuel L. Jackson (@SamuelLJackson) June 25, 2016
Then on Entertainment Weekly Radio, he said he discussed it with Star Wars creator George Lucas and Lucas said, “‘I’m okay with that. You can be alive.’” Walt Disney owns Lucasfilm, so they would have the ultimate decision. But George still has a lot of influence in terms of how things will play out in films to come. Hopefully Mace Windu will make a comeback, because that would be extra lit.
Do you want to see Mace Windu in another Star Wars film? Leave a comment (I read and reply to all of them). Hit that share button & tag a friend who needs to see this. …no, really. Do it.
