Fans of the original Star Wars trilogy remember Oola, a Twi'lek in gangster Jabba the Hutt's court, from the first trilogy's closing chapter, Return of the Jedi. A Twi'lek is a humanoid being with twin tenticular appendages protruding from the head. Oola was Jabba's slave dancer - at least until she displeased him so much, he fed her alive to his monster.
Ever wonder who the actress playing Oola was and what she looked like? Wonder no more! Here she is, the woman behind the costume . . . Femi Taylor!
Femi Taylor is a British actress and dancer who got her first big break as Tantomile in the original London production of Cats (which I bring up only because I featured Janet Hubert, the original Tantomile from the New York production of Cats, on this blog in September 2009 - not because I actually liked that musical!) when she learned that she got the role of Oola in Return of the Jedi.
She actually reprised her role for a 1997 special edition of the 1983 film for new scenes that were added to it.
Because of this role - and, quite possibly, because she turned out to be a beautiful woman under that costume, and with a cool British accent at that - Femi Taylor has appeared at Star Wars conventions throughout the world.
Fun fact: Her brother, Benedict Taylor, appeared in The Phantom Menace, the first episode of the Star Wars prequel trilogy, as a fighter pilot.
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