Star Wars: Gremlin Director Says George Lucas Stole Baby Yoda

Baby Yoda, the character that appeared in The Mandalorian in 2019, quickly captured the hearts of many fans. But director Joe Dante, best known for 1984’s Gremlins and its 1990 sequel, now claims Disney and Lucasfilm drew a little too much inspiration from his work without naming him. In a recent Interview with San Francisco Chronicle Dante explained that Baby Yoda’s design was “completely stolen” from one of the films’ main gremlins, Gizmo.

“I think the longevity of the Gremlins movies we really owe to that one character, Gizmo, who’s essentially like a baby. Which, of course, brings me to the subject of Baby Yoda, who was completely stolen and just plain copied.”

While Yoda himself made his debut before the debut of the first Gremlins film, Baby Yoda is a more recent addition to the franchise. While Dante isn’t too keen on the character, he doesn’t hold grudges against Disney and doesn’t want to take legal action.