Captain America Director Joe Johnston Really Wants To Make A Boba Fett Movie

Joe Johnston and Boba Fett go way back. Long before the Captain America director cut his teeth on family fare like Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and Jumanji, Johnston was a visual effects illustrator and designer for George Lucas’s original Star Wars trilogy. In fact, he did the final designs on the villainous Boba Fett for ILM. And if he gets his way, he’ll help introduce the bounty hunter to a new generation.

While promoting Captain America to the press over the weekend, Johnston was asked by ScreenRant if Lucas had seen a final cut of The First Avenger. An innocent question out of leftfield, but every once in a while, inquires like that score interesting answers, and Johnston’s qualifies. He essentially said that he’d happily show the superhero adventure to Lucas if the Star Wars icon ever asked, then followed that up with, “I’m trying to get George to make a feature based on Boba Fett.”

And with that, one million Star Wars chat rooms overloaded with die-hard fans who submitted ideas for their dream Boba Fett movie. At the same time, two million chat rooms filled with haters who called the idea dumb.

Johnston was asked if he’d like to direct such a feature, and he naturally replied that he would, but no one has helmed a feature-length Star Wars movie outside of Lucas since Richard Marquand helmed Return of the Jedi back in 1983. Plus, no one expands on the cinematic Star Wars universe except Lucas, himself, so the chances of Johnston being able to handpick a character from that world for a standalone adventure seem slim, at best.

That being said, Johnston has a few things going for him. One, he grew up under Lucas’s tutelage, having worked on the original trilogy. He’s entrenched in the Spielberg-Lucas camp, having worked on Raiders of the Lost Ark while also taking over for the former’s beloved Jurassic Park series. And if Captain America is a huge hit, Johnston could find himself with a bit of clout. Could he spend it on a Boba Fett movie? Probably not … but wouldn’t it be pretty damn cool if it actually happened?

Sean O'Connell
Managing Editor

Sean O’Connell is a journalist and CinemaBlend’s Managing Editor. Having been with the site since 2011, Sean interviewed myriad directors, actors and producers, and created ReelBlend, which he proudly cohosts with Jake Hamilton and Kevin McCarthy. And he's the author of RELEASE THE SNYDER CUT, the Spider-Man history book WITH GREAT POWER, and an upcoming book about Bruce Willis.