For those feeling a bit unfamiliar with the fierce species native to Endor, here are 23 amazing facts about the Star Wars Ewoks – The Battle for Endor.
Possibly a Canon
The film is somewhat a canon, at least when it was released in November 1985. Events in the film must be set shortly after Return of the Jedi. When the Rebel Alliance including Luke, Leia, and Han encountered Wicket – a prominent figure on Endor, the Ewok warrior does not speak English.
Racial Stereotype
In contrast to what’s depicted in Return of the Jedi, the Ewoks in The Battle for Endor speak English. According to Common Sense Media, their English skill may appear to be some sort of racial stereotype.
A Continuity Error
The film features an extensive use of Ewokese, the native language of the species, but Wicket speaks English. The only possible explanation is that he learns English from Cindel, otherwise it is a continuity error because Wicket doesn’t understand Leia in Return of the Jedi.
C-canon
The Holocron Continuity Database classifies The Battle for Endor under the “C-canon” category. The database is likely obsolete now or due for a major revamp considering the transfer of ownership from Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012.
English-speaking Ewoks
ABC aired the Ewoks TV series from September 1985 to December 1986. The series has 26 episodes over its two-seasons run. Events in the series are set after The Battle for Endor. Every single Ewok speaks English in the series. Most Star Wars fans are not fond of the idea, but they still consider the series a canon – at that time.
Viewer Discretion Is Advised
The premise delivers a captivating storyline for kids. However, some scenes couldn’t be further removed from the idea of children’s film. Ewoks may appear cute and cuddly, but they can transform into formidable soldiers when the going gets tough; they can wield weapons and are perfectly capable of killing. Dead bodies (including a character that has been burned alive) are not off-limits.
More Warnings
Disconnection between the target audience and the level of violence happens throughout the film. It starts with the violent murders of Cindel’s family, followed by a series of gunfights, swordfights, piercing arrows, burned cities, and corpses lying on the ground, among others.
Nightsister
Charal is female human of the planet Dathomir. She is a witch of the Nightsisters, a sect of the Sith. All members of the sect are sensitive to the force, but only the dark side of it. They also appear in Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 3.
Tauntauns
The Blurgs, pack animals of the Marauder, are based on the discarded concept of Tauntauns, seen in The Empire Strikes Back. Phil Tippet, a co-creator of the stop motion chess scene in A New Hope, developed the discarded idea.
Blurgs
The discarded concept turns out to be quite popular as the Blurgs are featured in multiple films and series including Star Wars: Rebels Hera’s Heroes and Star Wars: The Clone Wars Liberty on Ryloth. They also appear in The Mandalorian Chapter 1.
The Cage
There is a cage in the castle prison of Terak. It is the same cage used in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom to lower Willie. In Star Wars movie Ewoks – The Battle for Endor, there are some visible bones inside the cage.
Intense Violence
Just six minutes into the film, viewers are exposed to an intense scene of violence. Mace and Catarine take shelter in a hut. Moments later, they are killed when the hut is blown up.
Darkest Moments
Some of the darkest moments in the film happen during the opening scenes. Jeremitt was gunned down after just ten minutes, leaving Cindel as the sole human survivor on Endor. As she and Wicket struggle to find safety, they are captured, although quickly enough the two manage to escape. Throughout the film, viewers can see how Cindel exhibits signs of post-traumatic issues.
Unexpected Space Opera
Everyone knows that Star Wars is a space-opera, and they expect all films in the franchise to follow the same formula of sci-fi, drama, and actions. Unlike all others in the franchise, The Battle for Endor leans heavily on the Dark Age fantasy with dragons, magic, and dungeons. It is an unusual and unexpected deviation from the genre, making it unique if not plain weird.
Publications
Other publications as part of The Battle for Endor include a book-and-record of the same title published by Buena Vista Records in 1985 to fill the gaps in the film’s storyline, and “The Ring, the Witch, and the Crystal: An Ewok Adventure” by Random House in 1986.
Alarm Bell Holder
An alarm bell holder in Terak’s fortress is made of an Abyssin ornament. The same decoration is also seen in Return of the Jedi at Jabba’s Palace.
Merchandise
There doesn’t seem to be a serious merchandising effort for The Battle for Endor. One of the most popular and therefore sought-after items is the soundtrack record, which contains music featured in both the film and its predecessor Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure, released in 1986. The entire record is a little longer than 30-minutes.
Poster
The most interesting movie poster for The Battle for Endor is the German version, “Kampf Um Endor.” At the center of the frame is either Mace Towani or his father. It’s a misleading poster as they are both killed in the opening scenes.
Disney Teek
The giggling creature featured in The Battle for Endor is called Teek. Although the creature was not originally part of the merchandising campaign for the film, Disney seized the opportunity in 2009 to include it in its Collector Pack #2.
Expensive Sequel
Back in 1985, George Lucas said that a sequel for the Star Wars movie Ewoks – The Battle for Endor was in development. Later on Lucas confirmed that the next movie had been canceled for financial reasons. In simple words, the movie was getting too expensive to make. The only Ewoks 3 in existence is Marvel’s Ewoks third issue.
Non-canon Apocalypse
In an issue of Star Wars Tales, rumor has it that the Ewoks meet their demise in the aftermath of the destruction of Death Star II. It is said that the debris from the super-weapon wipe the native species of Endor out. It has been declared non-canon.
Future Journalist
Cindel Towani grew up to be a journalist in the New Republic Era. She appears in Tyrant’s Nest novel, published in 1996.
End Credits
In the original broadcast, the end credits rolled over the final scene. In the home-video versions, the end credits rolled over a conventional black background.
Amazing, huh? We thought so too. Maybe you know about some other amazing facts that had to deal with the Ewoks. Let us know. We’d love to hear from you.
Other things you may want to know about:
Where is the actor who played Cindel in Ewoks now?
Aubree Miller played Cindel Towani in two Ewok films. She was four years old at the time playing Cindel whose character was five years old. And she was also in the film The Message in 2012. She is from Sherman Oaks, California. She was born in January 1979. Her net worth is about $70,000,000. She’s single. She loves traveling and her favorite color is blue.
Who played Wicket in the Star Wars franchise?
Warwick Ashley Davis played several characters in the Star Wars series, but his most famous is Wicket from the Ewok films. He also played Professor Flitwick in the Harry Potter films. The voices of Wicket W. Warwick were Jim Henshaw, Denny Delk, and Dee Bradley Baker.
What do we know about the Ewok Village?
The Ewok Village was called Bright Tree Village on the Forest Moon of Endor. The Ewok tribe called Panshee lived there and helped defeat the Galactic Empire. The real ‘Ewok Village’ is called Finca Bellavista on 600 acres in Costa Rica’s South Pacific side. It’s a mountainous treehouse community that is sustainable.
