As loyal Star Wars fans probably know, the character of Boba Fett began life as concept designs of Darth Vader when the now famed Dark Lord of the Sith was originally slated to be a rogue bounty hunter. Boba Fett’s design was spawned by concept art by visionary conceptual designer Ralph McQuarrie, with the final design credited to effects artist and art director Joe Johnston. The bounty hunter first appeared in physical form in a screen test conducted on June 28, 1978 and was portrayed by Duwayne Dunham, the assistant film editor of The Empire Strikes Back. The screen test was presented by Ben Burtt, sound designer for the same film. Originally designed for “super troopers”, a character that never materialized in the original Star Wars trilogy, Fett’s costume was initially all white and included a Star Wars beach towel that filled in for his cape. Boba Fett’s white armor was also later modeled by Alan Harris, who went on to play uncredited roles as Bossk and a Bespin security guard in The Empire Strikes Back.

Boba Fett’s preliminary features included electronic readouts on his chest, a tilting range finder, a rifle described as a “laser submachine gun”, flamethrower, dart guns, storage pockets below the knees, spiked shoes, wrist-mounted flashlight, pistol, grappling projectile, a jetpack, and of course the aforementioned towel. Verbally mentioned in the screen test but not actually shown were the scalps of his enemies.

The change in color was already noted during the screen test, the reason being to visually differentiate the bounty hunter from Imperial Stormtroopers and Darth Vader. As a result, a white Boba Fett was never seen on screen in any official capacity. Despite that, a slew of toys, collectibles, and other products depicting all white concept and prototype versions of Boba Fett have since been released to commemorate the birth of what will likely remain as one of the most popular characters in the Star Wars universe.