History in Objects: Boba Fett “Wanted” Poster

“History in Objects” is a continuing series exploring Lucasfilm’s legacy stretching from our founding in 1971 to today. Through objects both rare and commonplace, the company’s past, present, and future are brought to life.

Boba Fett’s first reveal to the public famously occurred on September 24, 1978 when the enigmatic bounty hunter walked alongside Darth Vader in the San Anselmo Country Fair Parade, a location not far from Lucasfilm’s northern California headquarters. Spectators lining the parade route must have been curious about the intimidating armored figure with a T-shaped visor and jetpack, as his mainstream debut in The Star Wars Holiday Special was still two months away. Without a backstory yet to support him, Lucasfilm needed a way to define just who this new accomplice to Darth Vader was, especially when he made public appearances alongside the Dark Lord.

One solution was to create small posters for the appearances that clearly positioned Fett as a bounty hunter who, in this case, was interested in the whereabouts of Greedo’s brother Ludlo, a non-canon character briefly featured in the Holiday Special (scripted as “Bludlow”). Dated 1978, these posters were introduced at the very beginning of the publicity campaign for Boba Fett, who would soon be getting his own action figure the following year in anticipation of his theatrical debut in The Empire Strikes Back.

While Fett’s presence must have been a thrilling surprise for anyone attending a Darth Vader appearance, his days of posing for snapshots and signing photos for fans were sadly short-lived. Following his brief but memorable stint in The Empire Strikes Back, he was no longer being made available for public appearances by mid-1981.

While Fett’s legend continued to grow in the years following the original Star Wars trilogy, the early publicity tour that launched him into the public spotlight quietly faded from memory, along with the “wanted” posters that helped promote him. Interestingly, images of the posters do pop up in several photos from the early Lucasfilm days, tacked up in the temporary offices the company had leased near the Universal Studios lot before moving in late 1979.