Who is Embo?

Although he utters just one word we can comprehend — the name of his anooba, Keibu — in Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, Embo is an intriguing presence in the film, now in theaters everywhere.

With lithe limbs and a round metallic hat that can protect against enemy fire or be wielded as a weapon, the Kyuzo bounty hunter has a striking physique. Fans of Star Wars: The Clone Wars first met Embo in the Season 2 episode “Bounty Hunters,” when he and the rest of Sugi’s crew joined forces with the Jedi Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Ahsoka Tano. In an homage to Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samari, Embo was one of seven surprising allies who helped teach a village of humble farmers to defend themselves against Hondo Ohnaka and his pirates.

In his animated introduction, Embo quickly showcased his lethal skill with his bowcaster and his bare hands. But Lucasfilm President and Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni reveals that Embo was always destined for live action, dating back to a piece of concept art created two decades ago. “While we were writing and creating The Clone Wars, George [Lucas] was also developing a live action series called Star Wars: Underworld,” Filoni tells StarWars.com. “He had a lot of visual development done where he was exploring new designs for ships, planets, droids and aliens. When we would meet to discuss upcoming Clone Wars [episodes], George would use some of that visual inspiration for our stories.”

On one particular day, Lucas shared a piece of concept art for an alien bounty hunter. “It was very rough,” Filoni recalls. “He had the large round hat but many of the details were unresolved.” The mysterious bounty hunter had yet to be named Embo, but Lucas and Filoni both loved the design and wanted to incorporate it into the “Bounty Hunters” episode. “I gave Embo the species name ‘Kyuzo’ which was a character from the Seven Samurai played by Seiji Miyaguchi,” Filoni adds. “I really liked that character so I gave a nod to the performance in Embo's character.”

A loyal companion

As Embo made more regular appearances, he gained an anooba companion named Marrok. “[Concept artist] Pat Presley took that rough design and refined it and I gave Embo the dog,” Filoni says. Well known for his appreciation of wolves and other animals, the anooba was a nod to one of Filoni’s favorite characters from another franchise, G.I. Joe’s "Snake Eyes," who has a dog named Timber. “I always liked that combination of a warrior and dog,” Filoni says.

Beyond the G.I. Joe inspiration, Embo’s original anooba was also steeped in Earthbound legends. “The name Marrok comes from Arthurian Legend and a story called ‘Sir Marrok: A Tale of the Days of King Arthur’ by Allen French,” Filoni reveals. “In the story, a knight of Arthur's round table returns from the Crusades and is transformed into a wolf by a witch who has taken over his kingdom.”

Embo and Marrok made several appearances over the years in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, with ties to Jabba the Hutt and a paying gig as security detail for the Grand Hutt Council amid the rise of Maul’s Shadow Collective, several jobs with young Boba Fett’s crew, and an assignment targeting political enemy Rush Clovis for Darth Sidious (just to name a few).

In The Mandalorian and Grogu, we meet Embo in a new era, the age of the New Republic. The times have changed, along with Embo’s companion, but his loyalty still remains up for sale. “I figured that Marrok was probably no longer around by the time of the film, so we gave Embo a new dog named Keibu,” Filoni notes, before teasing “I did come up with a story about what happened to Marrok so maybe one day we can share that somehow.”

‘Business is business’

Filoni has long been the voice of Embo, but to bring the animated hunter to live action, his physical form was rendered through computer animation by Industrial Light & Magic. "His motion is based on stunt performer Donald Mills’ actions, with heavy modification by our ILM animation team to account for Embo’s height,” the film’s Animation Supervisor Hal Hickel says. Hickel, Filoni notes, also spoke with Lucasfilm Animation Director Keith Kellogg and the rest of the legacy Clone Wars team to ensure the character stayed true to form.

It’s just one example of the collaboration that seamlessly blends the physical puppets and practical ships and real environments with CG elements, ships, aliens, and creatures in The Mandalorian and Grogu. “In a fun moment, Embo does a touch of his hat in the movie, which is something he did in animation,” Filoni says, “so I think there was a lot of great observation and care that went into bringing Embo to life.”

And while Embo is something of a ruthless rogue, he inhabits a gray area in the continuum of good versus evil in the galaxy. “Embo has always been portrayed as neither a good guy nor a bad guy,” Filoni says. “I think he respects Mando as a hunter, but business is business.”

And Embo’s business is capturing his target and getting paid.