Star Wars: 20 Worst Franchise Moments (So Far)
2. Introducing Jar Jar Binks
Film: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
It would be interesting to have been a viewer back in 1999. Just imagine how cinemagoers must have felt when they first saw Jar Jar Binks; first, a sense of extreme irritation soon replaced by a sense of unbearable horror as they realized he was going to be one of the film's main characters.
Jar Jar is just as bad as you remember; he's still bizarre, wildly unfunny, pointless and, just like the Neimoidians and Watto, he's arguably racist. He is pretty much the definitive terrible comedy side-kick and is not only one of the worst Star Wars characters, he's possibly one of the worst movie characters in cinematic history.
He's always insufferable, but his introduction lingers in the memory. It contains his infamous shout of "Oh no!" and his excruciatingly annoying antics during this scene make this probably the worst Jar Jar scene in the film. Liam Neeson and Ewan McGregor look pained to be acting alongside him.
Although the trade disputes and bland opening crawl had already dropped some hints, this scene is probably the moment when Star Wars fans realized this movie wasn't going to live up to the hype.