I always felt like Chewbacca appealed more to adults than children. Peter Mayhew, the actor who portrayed the famous Wookiee, passed away a few days ago (his death was announced yesterday), at what seems the surprisingly young age of 74. There was always a sense of age in his portrayal of Chewbacca, right from Mayhew's first appearance as the character in 1977's Star Wars , a kind of weariness implied in the slight tremble of his limbs. It's no wonder Expanded Universe stories made Chewbacca hundreds of years old, the long life of a Wookiee finally confirmed canonically when Mayhew appeared as Chewbacca in the prequel, Revenge of the Sith , in 2005. This is a quality not quite replicated by Mayhew's replacement in the role since retiring, Joonas Suotamo, who played Chewbacca in The Last Jedi and Solo . George Lucas supposedly based the character on his dog but somehow Chewbacca never seemed dog-like to me. The costume vaguely recalls Lon Chaney Jr's Wolf Man, Planet of the Apes , or even Creature from the Black Lagoon . This may be another reason I think he appealed more to older viewers than to young. He's like an old friend, no longer the main attraction but still a welcome presence, along for the ride. The 60s and 70s had a lot of fiction rethinking the roles of traditionally villainous characters, notably in books like Grendel and Interview with the Vampire . Chewbacca was part of the menagerie of Star Wars ; a novel aspect of the film that advanced the idea to its next stage--now the aliens and monsters were just common sights, fellow citizens. Yet the seven foot tall "walking carpet" could never just fade into a patchwork. I met Mayhew briefly in 2010, at Comic Con. He seemed a very kind, patient man.
