Who Is The Mayor Of Mos Espa From The Book Of Boba Fett?

Warning: This article contains spoilers for "The Book of Boba Fett" Chapter 1

Based on a character famous for saying almost nothing in his first two "Star Wars" feature films, the Disney+ series "The Book of Boba Fett" returns fans to the twin-sunned planet Tatooine, the criminal underworld of Mos Espa, and the exploits of the helmeted bounty hunter Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison). Making his big-screen debut in 1990's "Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back," the character actually makes two earlier appearances. 

As noted by StarWars.com, Fett shows up in the animated one-off "The Star Wars Holiday Special" in 1978, and that same year was spotted as a costumed character marching alongside Darth Vader at the San Anselmo Country Fair parade. But despite his incommunicative ways on screen, the roguish bounty-seeking mercenary quickly establishes himself as one of the most charismatic characters in George Lucas' galaxy-spanning, multi-film "Star Wars" universe.

Spun off from the Disney+ hit series "The Mandalorian," the new series sees Fett taking over the Mos Espa hideout of Jabba the Hutt, who is memorably choked to death by Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) in "Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi." While fans are likely to know the city on Tatooine well from this earlier "Star Wars" installment, they might be curious to learn more about the intriguing mayor of Mos Espa and the part he might play in "The Book of Boba Fett."

Premiering on Disney+ with the episode "Stranger in a Strange Land," the streamer's new series finds bounty hunter and crime boss Boba Fett teaming up with the assassin Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) to lay claim to the Mos Espa palace once lorded over by the now-deceased Jabba. Marinating in a healing tank, Fett's troubled dreams provide viewers with flashbacks filling in his backstory, including his epic escape from the gruesome sarlacc pit that swallows and proceeds to digest him in "Return of the Jedi."

Holding court in Jabba's throne room in Mos Espa, Fett is awaiting a visit by the city's mayor, Mok Shaiz — who, according to The Hollywood Reporter, is voiced by director Robert Rodriguez — whom he expects to pay suitable homage to himself and Shand as the city's new crime lords. But instead, the mayor's emissary turns up and tells Fett that it's Shaiz, in fact, who is expecting Fett to pay tribute, and not the other way around. Taking this turn of affairs into consideration, even though the mayor of Mos Espa himself doesn't make an appearance in the episode, his disregard for Fett's powerful position could indicate his possibly adversarial role in future chapters of "The Book of Boba Fett." As of right now, there is no further knowledge about who Shaiz is, and whether or not he is a completely original character for the series.