The Ewok masks were designed by Stuart Freeborn. At one point during filming, the Ewok actors went on strike and wore t-shirts with the slogan "REVENGE OF THE EWOKS." After their coach driver, who had agreed to let the actors onto set early for their strike, arrived with no actors in his bus, the actors emerged from a hill and began shouting "revenge." Margo Apostolos, who played the Ewok warrior Tokkat in the film, laughed at and recounted the moment as a memorable experience to Star Wars Insider, claiming that their protest got the crew scared as well. [10] The Ewoks are never referred to by name in Return of the Jedi 's dialogue; the name only appeared in the script directions, the novelization, the movie's credits, and other spin-off and promotional materials.

In Ewok society, the most important people were the chief, the medicine man, and the Council of Elders, with a different council leading each individual Ewok tribe. [5]

Merry Gifting!

By the time of the Galactic Civil War, the Ewoks had reached a level of civilization where they engaged in religious, artistic, medical, and even political activities, and spoke in their own native tongue of Ewokese. Nevertheless, they still focused most of their energies on the daily provision of food. [9] They had acquired knowledge of pottery, hunting, the construction of complex wooden structures and the creation of fire. While most of their lives would be spent in the treetops, several members of the tribe would be required to venture out on the forest floor to forage for berries, gather herbs, and hunt. During warm summer months, some Ewoks stayed in fishing villages or hunting and farming lodges on the forest floor. Utilizing ponies and bordoks to haul loads of supplies between settlements, they nonetheless kept their guard up for ferocious predators and other sentient creatures such as the Yuzzums. [5] The Ewoks animated series had a comic book series, one issue of which crosses over with the comic for Ewoks' sister animated series, Droids. [18] Breznican, Anthony; Robinson, Joanna (December 20, 2019). "25 Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Cameos You Might Have Missed". Vanity Fair . Retrieved October 4, 2020. George Lucas intended that a primitive race should overthrow the Empire in what was intended at that time to be the final episode, and had originally planned to use Wookiees, but decided against it after it had been established that Chewbacca was already proficient with technology at that point. His answer was to create a new race called Ewoks, which is "Wookiee" with the syllables reversed and altered to resemble the name of a Native American people, the Miwok. [22] Alter, Ethan. " 'Star Wars': How 'Ewoks' and 'Droids' Arrived on Saturday Morning TV". Yahoo . Retrieved December 19, 2015.

They're using a very primitive dialect, but I do believe they think I am some sort of god." ―C-3PO [1] The Ewoks worship the protocol droid C-3PO, thinking he is a god due to his golden, metallic body and later display of power arranged by Luke Skywalker through the Force. C-3PO tells the Council of Elders the adventures of the rebel heroes Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo. The Ewoks accept the Rebels into their tribe and ally themselves to their cause. They then help in the ground battle to destroy the Imperial shield generator on the forest floor, and their primitive weapons fell the Imperial stormtroopers and the AT-ST walkers of the Empire. This assistance paves the way to victory at the Battle of Endor. Later that night, the Ewoks are shown holding a huge celebration. Later that night Luke went alone to the shield generator bunker, was captured and taken by Darth Vader to the Emperor on the Death Star.Despite their primitive technology and their isolated homeworld, [1] Ewoks were not totally unknown in the wider galaxy; during the Clone Wars, " Ewok Jerky" was sold at Power Sliders, a diner on the planet Abafar. [17] The Ewoks were a primitive people who lived high above ground in the tall trees of the forest. They were naturally suspicious of strangers, and kept to themselves, which is probably why the Imperial troops ignored them. In Return of the Jedi, the Ewoks played a pivotal role in the defeat of the Imperial troops on the Forest Moon and the resultant destruction of the Death Star and the Emperor’s forces by the Rebel fleet. Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor are made-for-TV spin-off movies that aired on ABC in 1984 and 1985 respectively. The events of both films take place between Episode IV: A New Hope and Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, so don't expect any cameos by the Rebel Alliance or the Galactic Empire. The movies follow the traditional '80s child-adventurer movie template: children are separated from their parents, encounter some adorable puppet-like creatures, and go on a journey that serves as an allegory for growing up.