As far as space gangsters go, Jabba the Hutt seemed pretty good at it. During his appearance in Star Wars, we saw the amphibious crime lord’s lair, full of cronies who worshipped his every move, as well as the VIP treatment he gets at sporting events. Illegal activity wasn’t his only option, though, since he actually could’ve been fighting the Sith the whole time.
No, seriously, it’s enshrined in Star Wars canon. Well, OK, it’s part of the Legends corner of the universe, where all the novels and comics spun out from the Star Wars movies pre-Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm. But, the precedent is there in the Jedi Beldorion.
He was a force-sensitive Hutt who lived centuries before the rise of the Galactic Empire. He’s introduced in the book Planet of Twilight, where it’s revealed he trained on Coruscant. After becoming a Jedi Knight, he was sent on a mission for the order that’d be his (eventual) downfall.
See, he was sent to a planet called Nam Chorios, which held a bunch of crystals under the surface that made force powers stronger. Drunk on the enhanced energy, Beldorion cast aside being a Jedi and became a Sith instead, taking over the planet’s population of humanoid species in order to get better access to these crystals.
He lived there for centuries, becoming a tyrant kept alive and relatively young by sapping the planet’s energy. Eventually, a little-known Star Wars character known as Leia would show up, drawn there when Beldorion captured another Jedi, Callista Ming. When Leia went to find Callista, she too was taken prisoner, but she was even more fearsome than she was when dealing with Jabba. She broke free and killed Beldorion.
And so the only Hutt trained in the force was brought to an end in an appropriate fashion. But, to get back to my point, Jabba could’ve been a mighty hero or an even more tyrannical Star Wars villain with the right amount of guidance and training.
Personally, I’d watch that Star Wars series just to see what force powers he specializes in. Beldorion used force storms a lot. It seems likely Jabba could do the same. They’ve limited mobility, so environmental attacks are much more their speed than force lightning and such. Either way, Jabba trying to be mysterious in a cloak is an incredible image, right?
Check out our guide to the Star Wars movies in order to be reminded of how much Jabba influenced the franchise (spoilers: not much). We have guides on the Skeleton Crew release date and the Acolyte release date if you’d like to see where else the force is strong these days.