Star Wars, Stuttering, and Stereotypes

June 18, 1977 was the day before my sixteenth birthday. Three weeks earlier, on May 25th, the movie phenomena, Star Wars was released and we decided to go see it for my birthday. We developed a strategy in order to save time on serpentine lines that coiled around buildings, half of us holding a place on the ticket holders line while half waited to purchase tickets on the ticket buyers line. Once the tickets were purchased we would reconvene on the ticket holders line. Our intent was to watch the 9:00 p.m. show. That show sold out before we got our tickets and we remained on line finally getting tickets for the midnight show. When I left that theater, I was sixteen and a Star Wars fan for life.

I love Star Wars, although, I love some episodes more than others. The Empire Strikes Back was my least favorite. I also find their adherence to a plot format tiresome. This post, however, is not a movie review, per se, so I'll spare you the particulars of my opinion on the Star Wars dynasty, because love an episode or hate an episode, I'll go see every single one and I'll watch them again and again. This post is more of an observation from The Last Jedi and the introduction of one of the most villainous Star Wars characters, I think has been developed.

Enter Benicio Del Toro's code breaker, DJ. DJ, it appears, is an enigma. One initially wonders whether he is a rakish, yet ultimately heroic character, like Han Solo or Lando Calrissian. At the conclusion of the movie, it would appear not. He is amoral, sidling up to, not necessarily the highest bidder, but the party that will ultimately allow him success in his machinations. DJ is really someone who we might know or meet. He could be our neighbor, a coworker, or a guy on the bus. He is self-serving and arrogant AND he stutters.

In The Star Wars saga, one is immersed in a world that exists long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away and a plot and characters who become friends and foes. While it is pure fiction, the writing and character portrayals draw on our biases and cultural mores and those are woven throughout the story and create a powerful subtext. Our personal experiences and background knowledge are fused with a story. Hence my struggle with Benicio Del Toro's DJ. A deplorable, disreputable, opportunistic mercenary who is portrayed with a stutter.

I broached this matter with my SLP friends and one shared a more optimistic view, Del Toro's portrayal offered the notion that stuttering is "universal," literally. I would agree if the characters Finn or Poe stuttered, but no, it was the villain. I would assert, that yes, stuttering is universal and so is the shame that has been assigned to it. Art imitates life and DJ's speech sent a clear and powerful message, that stuttering is a dark flaw attributed to villainous characters. I would have hoped that in 2017, with all we know about stuttering, that greater sensitivity would be offered when developing the persona of a character. Movie makers and actors alike do bear a level of responsibility when creating works that reach billions in perpetuity. Now when I see DJ on the screen, I will forever be struck by his loathsome behavior and the disregard with which the actor chose to portray his speech.

Yes, art does imitate life, yet I truly believe there needs to be greater awareness and sensitivity in how actors portray their characters. Del Toro's DJ would still be abhorrent without stuttering and an entire segment of our society wouldn't be, once again, having to explain "stuttering is what we do, not who we are."