New Chewbacca Actor Already Typecast
“I’m so much more than a walking carpet,” said Joonas Suotamo, the 31-year old Finnish actor who replaced veteran actor Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca, starting with The Last Jedi. We caught up with the 6 feet, 10 inch tall former basketball player during his press tour for the upcoming Solo: A Star Wars Story.
“Chewbacca is great, don’t get me wrong, but the only scripts I’m getting are for other Wookiee roles. It’s frustrating, because people can’t really see past all the fur. I’d actually love to show my full range and flex my chops as a Xenomorph, Pumpkinhead, or anything for Guillermo del Toro one day.”
Suotamo is thinking beyond the masks as well. “I was big into theater in high school, so I’d love to do something a bit more dramatic… maybe play a famous tall guy like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, or William Wallace for the stage. But my ultimate dream is to be the first big man James Bond. It’s about time 007 was closer to 007 feet,” joked the former Penn State basketball star.
As for rumors that Suotamo may appear in Space Jam 2 alongside LeBron James, the big man only had this to say: “I swore a life debt I wouldn’t say yes or no.”
For the moment, however, Suotamo is first and foremost “New-bacca” as Star Wars fans have dubbed him. You can catch him as Chewie in the soon-to-be-released Solo as well as Episode IX in 2019. Stay tuned to FakingStarWars.net for all the Star Wars news worth faking. Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for even more unbelievable news from a galaxy far, far away.
-William “Willybobo” Bobo
