Disney’s head honcho has not been shy about weighing in on Baby Yoda -- one of the breakout TV characters of the year. Ever since making his adorable debut on Disney+’s The Mandalorian, the public has been enamored with the pint-sized star. Disney CEO Bob Iger previously compared his feeling at seeing Baby Yoda for the first time to when Leonardo DiCaprio got started on Growing Pains.
If you thought that meant Bob Iger was prepared for how popular the meme-able Baby Yoda has become, think again! Even Disney’s CEO is shocked by how immense the response to The Mandalorian’s star has been. It is undoubtedly a wonderful thing to pleasantly be taken by surprise about. On Baby Yoda’s stratospheric stardom, Iger told THR:
Well, look, the scale of the reaction is probably beyond my expectations by a wide margin. That said, the moment I laid eyes on the character, I had a strong feeling the character was going to connect with audiences. It's just so cute, so interesting, so compelling, in many respects so familiar and yet so new.
Good point! While Bob Iger believed that Baby Yoda would connect with fans, it has to be another thing to see him hit this level of widespread affection. The Mandalorian’s creator, Jon Favreau, has weighed in with similar thoughts about fans’ curiosity with the character. Thankfully, fans do not have to worry about The Child much in Season 1, so Iger will probably continue to be surprised by his fame.
The adorableness of Baby Yoda is one of the critical aspects driving fans’ affection for him. In fact, the astronomical levels of his cuteness ended up being an issue for The Mandalorian’s music composer. There are some things worth working around, and the efforts around Baby Yoda have clearly paid off.
His popularity has led the stars of the Star Wars franchise, John Boyega and Daisy Ridley, to comment, with both of them weighing in on the epic debate of who is cuter – Porgs or Baby Yoda? In related face-offs, there is the Baby Groot versus Baby Yoda issue, which Guardians of the Galaxy’s director has given a dire prognosis on.
Baby Yoda has everyone buzzing as the year winds down. Star Wars’ Anthony Daniels, who plays C-3PO, has also provided a thoughtful warning for fans to consider. He wants people to know that Baby Yoda is not only for Christmas. I think it is safe to say that Baby Yoda's legend status will wear on well past the holidays. The craze for merchandise will only further his profile.
Not to mention, he is already popping up in Disneyland! The year is coming to a close with Baby Yoda remaining one of the year’s top trends. According to Google, the TV show he is on is one of the most popular of 2019! Will 2019 be forever known as the year the world met Baby Yoda? He is undoubtedly one of the highlights.
The force surrounding Baby Yoda is showing no signs of slowing down, and that should continue to make Bob Iger very happy! The Mandalorian is one of this winter’s premieres. New episodes of the live-action Star Wars series arrive on Fridays on Disney+. However, The Mandalorian will not be competing with The Last Jedi’s release weekend.
