Explained: Force Awakens Cameo, Did We See An Unmasked Jawa In The Mandalorian?

DCS
June 3, 2022

In The Mandalorian season 2, episode 2, “Chapter 10 – The Passenger,” an extraterrestrial that looks like an unmasked Jawa arrives, but it’s actually a species from Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Din Djarin and Baby Yoda depart Tatooine with the titular passenger, Frog Lady, and end up on an ice planet in The Mandalorian season 2, episode 2. However, they are ambushed by a group of criminals who upend Mando’s speeder and seek to take his goods before they can leave the desert world behind.

There are at least two different Star Wars aliens in the group, as well as at least one human figure (another is masked, so it’s difficult to tell). A Kajain’sa’Nikto, often known as a Red Nikto, is a sub-species of the Nikto aliens that have a long history of serving the Hutt clan, notably working for Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi. Mando dispatches him and the others quickly, but it’s the small, hooded monster who captures Baby Yoda who piques the most attention, due to his likeness to a Jawa.

Because Jawas are rarely seen without their hoods in Star Wars, the alien with the metallic face, who wears robes that resemble those of a Jawa, may easily be mistaken for one. Instead, the beast in The Mandalorian is the same as Scrapjaw Motito, who first debuted in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Scrapjaw meets Rey on Jakku, where he appears to be a local, in the J.J. Abrams film. He’s a scavenger who chats to Rey briefly about her discoveries, though it’s unclear exactly what he says (but it’s intended to be funny). Scrapjaw’s species has yet to be verified in Star Wars canon, and he wasn’t even given a name until 2019, but he wears the same mask in The Mandalorian, but his robe is lighter in color and made of a different material.

It’s unknown whether the bandit in The Mandalorian season 2, episode 2 is simply another member of the same species, or if it’s Scrapjaw Motito himself. While he’s on Jakku by the time of The Force Awakens, there’s a 25-year gap between this episode and the film, which is plenty of time for him to travel the galaxy and travel from Tatooine to Jakku, moving from one desert backworld to another (perhaps he’s the polar opposite of Anakin Skywalker and simply adores sand). Of course, it’s possible that the mask and design were readily available to The Mandalorian’s production team, and they chose to reuse it, but it’s more fun to envision one metallic-masked scavenger’s galaxy-trotting escapades.

Scrapjaw Motito, in addition to being a Jawa, resembles the Teedo, a creature from Star Wars: The Force Awakens. These are masked scavengers who encounter Rey once more, however their masks are different this time. Teedos and Scrapjaw have a lot in common with the Jawas from Star Wars, so while they’re not the same species, it’s evident they’re influenced by them. And, since Scrapjaw Motito’s species is unknown, perhaps the story of the former Jawa with the metal mask, who appears in both The Mandalorian and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, will be recounted one day – and that “Scrapjaw” is simply a shorter form of “Scrap Jawa.”