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Jar Jar Binks Actor Opens Up About Suicide

Newlove

Newlove

Member
Oct 28, 2017
617
England
This video is actually a couple of weeks old, but seen it hasn't got a huge amount of views and its worth a watch. It left me quite emotional and it's great to share his struggles now he's gone through it.

I remember the forum/media talk to the Instagram photo a couple of months ago. I think it could be eye opening for a few that critique fictional characters very harshly and the effects that large amount of hate can have on can have on the artist.

 
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CallMeShaft

CallMeShaft

The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
3,358
Gotta feel for the guy. Jar Jar was a shit character, but that's Lucas' fault. This guy was just trying to collect a freakin' paycheck and had to live with some of the most insane fans imaginable.
 
sibarraz

sibarraz

Prophet of Regret - One Winged Slayer
Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
18,094
Didn't the actor of kid anakin suffer the same?

Is terrifying how toxic can fandoms get
 
MasterYoshi

MasterYoshi

Member
Oct 27, 2017
11,011
Star Wars fandom are some of the worst there are. Look at how they treated this guy and Jake Lloyd. I'm sure Hayden had to have thick skin as well.
 
hibikase

hibikase

User requested ban
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
6,820
Jar Jar Binks wasn't anywhere as bad as what the Internet of that time claimed it to be.
 
Corky

Corky

Alt account
Banned
Dec 5, 2018
2,479
Jar Jar in one of the characters in the film with a personality.
 
TheBeardedOne

TheBeardedOne

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
22,189
Derry
CallMeShaft said:
Gotta feel for the guy. Jar Jar was a shit character, but that's Lucas' fault. This guy was just trying to collect a freakin' paycheck and had to live with some of the most insane fans imaginable.
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MasterYoshi said:
Star Wars fandom are some of the worst there are. Look at how they treated this guy and Jake Lloyd. I'm sure Hayden had to have thick skin as well.
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Couldn't have said it better myself

I feel for him
 
Kraken3dfx

Kraken3dfx

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,944
Denver, CO
The prequels being bad movies had nothing to do with the actors, it's a real shame people live in this world that will actively strike out at others trying to make a living. Whether is the guy manning the Amazon chat window for support or the guy playing Jar Jar Binks, we're all just trying to make it in this world.
 
Surfinn

Surfinn

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
28,590
USA
Will watch this video later. Always felt for the guy and I remember he posted something about struggling with suicide on social media a few months back, but found strength through his son/family.
 
BocoDragon

BocoDragon

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
5,207
I feel like this guy, Jake Lloyd and Kelly Marie Tran need to start a support group.

There are still future Star Wars movies that will claim people's lives...

"Star Wars... not even once."
 

Deleted member 51266

User requested account closure
Banned
Dec 26, 2018
278
I shared this on discord and it turned into a debate about TLJ/Prequels, and that alone highlights how appallingly jaded a large number of this fanbase is.

In regards to the video, I've seen Ahmed Best talk about it years ago, I'm glad to see him raising awareness with a new video.
 
Waddle Dee

Waddle Dee

Banned
Nov 2, 2017
3,725
California
That was a really sad, but sweet video. My heart goes out to him and any other actors who've faced hate from "fans" and insiders. He has nothing to apologize for. Some people just take fictional work too seriously and need to lay off.
 
Biggersmaller

Biggersmaller

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
4,966
Minneapolis
The character was terrible, but people need to get a grip on how seriously they regard movies. Nobody deserves real life harassment over something so silly.

hibikase said:
Jar Jar Binks wasn't anywhere as bad as what the Internet of that time claimed it to be.
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I don't recall exactly what I was writing on the internet in 1999. Considering I was in high school it was likely regrettably offensive.

That said, anything I wrote regrading Jar Jar was deserved.
 
a916

a916

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,816
I would hope people would take a minute to see that when what someone might think is criticism or jokes can turn very vitriolic and toxic for the person on the other end.

It's a shame and it wasn't his fault. This is the ugly side of fandom.

It's such a sad tale and I really hope LucasArts reaches out to him and gives him a role to at least redeem himself and something the fans can get behind? I don't know... I wish there was a way to make this right.
 
Z-Beat

Z-Beat

One Winged Slayer
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Oct 25, 2017
31,837
Him and the kid who played Anakin got hit pretty hard by the fandom. Everyone else pretty much bounced back
 
Gestalt

Gestalt

The Fallen
Nov 10, 2017
499
Damn, this is one of the realest things I've heard in a minute. Hope that picture he took stays with him as a reminder of what this shit's really about. Not many people know the kind of strength it takes to earn a moment like that.
 
samoyed

samoyed

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
15,191
This is why I'm skeptical of the claims in that asshole characters thread that "people can separate reality from fantasy".

There's clearly a gulf between what we believe people are capable of and what they actually do.

This is not to say artists should just stop writing certain types of characters but there's conversations that need to be had that aren't being had especially in these toxic fandoms.
 
Fuchsia

Fuchsia

Member
Oct 28, 2017
6,640
The hate that he and Jake Lloyd (Anakin) got was so outrageous and overblown. I remember people saying they destroyed their childhood... Like calm down. It's a movie. Take a breath.

Respect to him for talking about this stuff!
 
DOT_mjo

DOT_mjo

Banned
May 8, 2018
8,650
Boston "City of Champions" Massachusetts
The fact that people get so attached to a fictional universe is what's so scary. We should be happy enough to identify with the actual universe we live in, not seek an escape to a fictional universe. Especially not when someone damages that universe and we begin to head hunt and try to destroy that person's life.
 
Hydrus

Hydrus

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
4,298
sibarraz said:
Didn't the actor of kid anakin suffer the same?

Is terrifying how toxic can fandoms get
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Yea, it fucked him up.
0622-jake-lloyd-mugshot-1.jpg


Also apparently Hayden Christensen had a hard time.
 
HardTimesFamilyPride

HardTimesFamilyPride

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Oct 26, 2017
8,055
Appalachia
"And a lot of time, you know, I hear people say 'we're not talking about you, we're talking about Jar Jar.' You're talking about me. I put a lot of me into that role. And if you talk to any artist, and you talk to anyone who really cares about their work... you're talking about them."

This is a reason why it's important to keep in mind that your words and actions affect others even if those words and actions aren't directed towards them.

Get tired of seeing people put effort into trying to draw a line between shitting on a character and harassing the actor. It's already happening in this thread, when Ahmed Best has made it clear that it wasn't harassment directed toward him specifically that influenced this. Stop making excuses. Do better.
 
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Rogue Blue

Rogue Blue

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
2,273
He should not have anything to be ashamed of. Anything.

When you get down to it, it's just a goddamn movie, not the second coming of Jesus. There is absolutely no excuse to harass people like him the way these pieces of shit have done. Just despicable.

Same with Jake Lloyd and Kelly Marie Tran. I really hope that they don't let these people get to them. I hope they know that there are people out there that really value them as people and the performances they have provided for the Star Wars saga.

I swear it's times like this where I really do think that the Internet is a mistake.
 
SliceSabre

SliceSabre

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Oct 25, 2017
4,556
Everyone keeps saying Star Wars fans but even professional movie critics were harsh against Jar Jar as well. Sad that this guy was driven to such a state.
 
Ushojax

Ushojax

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Oct 30, 2017
5,927
The crazy thing is that Jar-Jar was the only character in Episode 1 that actually felt alive, that didn't feel like a piece of cardboard. Of course he was often annoying and far too cartoonish but his character has an arc and Ahmed Best clearly put his soul into trying to make it work. For me the most sincere moment of the movie is Jar-Jar talking to the Queen on Coruscant and talking about how he isn't afraid to go back and die with the rest of his people.

Nobody deserves to be abused for doing the best they can with bad material, but for some people Star Wars is literally all they have in their life. If they don't like it then to them the person responsible has to be destroyed. It happened to Best, Jake Lloyd, Kelly Marie Tran and if George hadn't already ascended to billionaire troll status before the prequels, it probably would have damaged him too.

If I don't like a movie I don't spend my time foaming at the mouth over it. I just don't watch it a second time.
 
woopWOOP

woopWOOP

Self-requested ban
Banned
Oct 26, 2017
2,654
I never thought the Jar Jar character was all that bad tbh
The character wasn't great, but I wouldn't mind if they did something more with the character in the other prequels.

Glad he didn't do it and good on him for being able to share his story
 
Lakeside

Lakeside

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Oct 25, 2017
9,214
Crazy that he had so much abuse. I hated the character but wasn't even aware of the actor's name. It wasn't his fault in any way.

But yeah at least he wasn't a cardboard cutout on film.
 
entremet

entremet

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Oct 26, 2017
59,970
This was before social media, so he was probably getting letters and crap.
 

Deleted member 9838

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Oct 26, 2017
2,773
phantom menace is easily the most disappointing and awful movie of all time but damn the fans going after the actors in some psycho shit
 
RedMercury

RedMercury

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Dec 24, 2017
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Being in a goddamn Star Wars movie should have been an amazing thing and instead shitheads had to ruin it for him.
 
Linkura

Linkura

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Oct 25, 2017
19,943
People are shit. He personally had nothing to do with Jar Jar Binks being a shitty character. His actual performance and voicework was fine. And even if he did suck, there's no reason to personally harass someone for that.
 
mael

mael

Avenger
Nov 3, 2017
16,764
The worst part about this particular character was that he could have worked if they stuck to the idea that he was the actual bad guy.
Heck even if that wasn't the plan originally they could have had an arc where the guy turn evil and embrace the hate the fandom gave him.
they really needed editors for this trilogy.
No question that the fanbase is all kinds of shit for this and other reasons.
 
Falcon511

Falcon511

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,148
That was moving

Idk. Back 20 years ago I didn't mind the character jar jar. I thought he was just this goofy alien. I liked him. My friend across the street liked him and it was his favorite character. I was 12 at the time so I was always busy with sports, going to the beach, more sports. Fandoms never really got to me around that age.
 
Biggersmaller

Biggersmaller

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
4,966
Minneapolis
Yerba_Sutra said:
This is a reason why it's important to keep in mind that your words and actions affect others even if those words and actions aren't directed towards them.

Get tired of seeing people put effort into trying to draw a line between shitting on a character and harassing the actor. Stop making excuses. Do better.
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What happened to Ahmed Best was inexcusable because people were being shitty to him because of Jar Jar. I actually think the character was shitty and a large contributor to making my most highly anticipated film of all time an awful experience. Jar Jar is so shitty its comical now and will deservedly go down as one of the worst decisions of Star Wars.

However, that sentiment is not harassment against a mocap actor.
 
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