Entertainment
Gremlins director claims The Mandalorian hun Baby Yoda was ‘completely stolen’ from Gizmo-Robert Oliver-Entertainment – Metro
Do you think they look alike?
What do you reckon? (Picture: Warner Bros./Disney/Lucasfilm?
In news you didn’t expect, the director of Gremlins has accused the creators of The Mandalorian of ripping off the 1984 horror comedy to create Baby Yoda.
Joe Dante, who directed both Gremlins and its infamous sequel, accused the Star Wars series of ‘shamelessly’ copying the design for Gizmo and his buddies.
Baby Yoda, or rather, The Child, was a regular character in The Mandalorian and stole hearts around the globe – something that mightily annoyed Dante.
‘Baby Yoda… is completely stolen and is just out-and-out copied. Shamelessly, I would think,’ he said in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle (via IndieWire).
Before launching into the criticism of Baby Yoda, Dante, 75, had been discussing the new Gremlins series that’s set for release on HBO Max.
Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, which credits Dante as a consultant, is set to arrive on the small screen later this year.
Baby Yoda came to our screens in 2019 and boy did we find him adorable (Picture: Disney/Lucasfilm)
The animated series is set to be helmed by American screenwriter and comic book producer Tze Chun, whose previous work includes ABC series Once Upon a Time.
Mulan voice actress Ming-Na Wen, Jurassic Park’s BD Wong, and James Hong, who recently starred as Gong Gong in Everything Everywhere All at Once, are part of the series’ voice cast.
Despite promoting the new Gremlins TV show, Dante made sure to defend the industry where Gremlins started: on the big screen.
‘I think the longevity of [Gremlins] is really key to this one character [Gizmo], who is essentially like a baby’.
Gizmo in the new animated series, Secrets of the Mogwai (Picture: Warner Bros.)
He continued: ‘I’ve seen these pictures over the years many times all over the world, and they always play well in a crowded theatre.’
‘Whenever I host a screening of either of these pictures, I always ask when I introduce it, “Raise your hand — how many people haven’t seen these movies?”‘
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‘There’s always about a third of the audience, usually young, who haven’t seen the movies,’ he explained during the interview.
As for Baby Yoda, he is set to return in the third season of The Mandalorian, but a release date is yet to be announced by Disney.
Metro.co.uk has contacted Disney+ for comment on this story.
You can watch The Mandalorian on Disney+ now.
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