Every Star Wars Main Character's Sidekick, Ranked
Star Wars devotees don't agree on much, but if you ask any one of them if the franchise has an astoundingly high number of fan-favorite characters, you'd be hard-pressed to find any who disagree. Ever since "A New Hope" hit theaters in 1977, George Lucas has capitalized on the success of his film by selling toys related to nearly every vehicle, base, or character who appeared on the screen.
If they appear anywhere in a Star Wars property, a character has a name, a backstory, and some sort of action figure. The franchise is all about characters, so this makes sense, and some of the best people in the galaxy far, far away are sidekicks. A great leading character needs a fantastic sidekick — even if that sidekick could be a leading character in their own right.
Everyone from Han Solo and Padmé Amidala to Boba Fett and Din Djarin has had exceptional sidekicks over the years. Everyone here, droid or otherwise, is a fantastic sidekick that anyone would want by their side, whether they're navigating the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs or shooting womp rats back home. Each sidekick stands on their own merit and is ranked accordingly.
14. Jar Jar Binks
Jar Jar Binks (Ahmed Best) first appeared in "The Phantom Menace," and it didn't take long for fans to learn to utterly hate the character. Despite this, Jar Jar played a significant role in the franchise, though his impact on galactic history was largely negative. Before that, he glommed onto Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson), believing he owed him a life debt after Qui-Gon inadvertently saved his life.
Jar Jar remains by Qui-Gon's side throughout "The Phantom Menace," introducing him to the Gungans and helping the Jedi reach Theed, the capital city of Naboo. As a sidekick, Jar Jar is largely ineffective, as he gets in the way, embarrasses his master, and fumbles his way across a battlefield, although he's surprisingly effective in battle despite most of his destruction resulting from clumsy accidents.
In subsequent appearances, Jar Jar unwittingly helps Senator Palpatine become the new Supreme Chancellor by ousting his predecessor. This grants Palpatine immense power, which he uses to become the new galactic Emperor. Jar Jar's story after the prequel trilogy isn't great, as he's outcast by the Gungans (again) and ostracized for his actions. He lived out his life in Theed, working as a street performer.
13. Rose Tico
Kelly Marie Tran's Rose Tico first appeared in "The Last Jedi," mourning the death of her sister, Paige. She died fighting the First Order in the Battle of D'Qar. Finn (John Boyega) meets Rose while he's on a self-appointed mission to help Rey and Rose zaps him for trying to steal an escape pod. He convinces her to help him find a codebreaker on Canto Bight, and they go on a mission to do just that.
Rose falls into the sidekick role, supporting Finn during their mission. Her dedication to the Resistance and to Finn ensures she's more than willing to put it all on the line to do what's right. Ultimately, their mission takes them to the First Order's flagship, where they're captured, manage to escape, and join the Resistance forces at the Battle of Crait.
During the battle, Rose saves Finn from a kamikaze maneuver to take out the First Order's battering ram cannon and they share an intimate moment after she saves his life. Rose doesn't appear much in "The Rise of Skywalker" due to technical difficulties in keeping her on-screen with the late Carrie Fisher's General Organa. She does, however, appear sporadically and takes part in the Battle of Exegol.
12. Fennec Shand
Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) first appeared in "The Mandalorian" as an elite assassin-for-hire whose bounty brings her to the attention of Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal). Her backstory remains undisclosed until she appears in "The Bad Batch," set 28 years before "The Mandalorian," detailing who she is and what she's all about. Fennec is a skilled warrior, which serves her well after meeting Boba Fett (Temuera Morrison).
Fett finds Fennec near death in Tatooine's Dune Sea and takes her to a cyberneticist modder to patch her up. This action brings Fennec closer to Fett, and she helps him recover his ship. Regardless, she becomes his right hand-woman and accompanies him on his mission to recover his ship. Later, they meet Din Djarin on Tython, recover Fett's armor, and form an alliance with the Mandalorian.
Fennec serves as Fett's sidekick throughout "The Book of Boba Fett" and recruits Din Djarin to their cause. She fights by his side regardless of the odds stacked against them and is always reliable for her counsel and skills with a blaster. Fennec is a fascinating and compelling character on her own, absent Fett, but serves as his sidekick for most of her appearances.
11. Kuiil
Kuiil (Misty Rosas and Nick Nolte) works as a vapor farmer on Arvala-7 when he meets Din Djarin. The Mandalorian bounty hunter seeks a high-value bounty protected by mercenaries, so Kuiil offers his assistance. The Ugnaught has worked his entire life to be free of servitude and is a highly skilled mechanic, engineer, and more. After Din Djarin rescues his bounty, a small child, Kuiil helps him negotiate with Jawas to restore his ship.
Kuiil helps restore the Razorcrest and sends the Mandalorian on his way. He repairs IG-11, an assassin-turned-bounty hunter droid Mando blasted to save the child. Kuiil accompanies the Mandalorian on his trip to Nevarro, helping to care for the child. Kuiil helps the Mandalorian for his own reasons, making him a sidekick who does what he wants when he wants, always finishing his declarations with, "I have spoken."
While on Nevarro, Kuiil spends his time caring for the child, which puts him in incredible danger. He rides a blurrg, which isn't enough to help him escape two scout troopers who capture the child and kill Kuiil. Later, Din Djarin touts his friendship with Kuiil to earn the trust and respect of a group of Ugnaughts.
10. Wicket Wystri Warrick
Wicket (Warwick Davis) first appeared in "Return of the Jedi," where he runs into Leia while on patrol. Wicket functions as a scout and warrior within his tribe, and he's initially fascinated and apprehensive of her. He pokes her with his spear and doesn't know what to think of her until she offers him food. When Imperial scout troopers find Leia, he intervenes by attacking them and leads her to his village.
Wicket's introduction of Leia to his fellow Ewoks makes him an emissary of sorts between the Rebels and his people. When the Rebels launch their attack on the second Death Star, a team attempts to destroy the battle station's shield generator on Endor. When this fails, Wicket helps lead his people in an all-out assault on the Imperial forces, waging a guerilla war campaign against them.
Wicket serves as Leia's sidekick, though less directly than others. Still, his trust in her helps convince the Ewoks to join forces with the Rebels and fight the Imperials, helping to win the day and destroy the Empire's core leadership at the Battle of Endor. Subsequently, Wicket appeared in numerous made-for-TV movies, books, comics, and more.
9. BB-8
BB-8 (Bill Hader) rolled onto the scene in "The Force Awakens" as Poe Dameron's (Oscar Isaac) astromech droid. Poe entrusts BB with the map to Jedi Master Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) before his capture. BB soon finds Rey (Daisy Ridley) and attaches himself to her. He remains with her when Rey meets Finn, who is wearing Poe's jacket. They band together and escape the First Order aboard the Millennium Falcon.
From there, BB stays close to Rey but rejoins Poe at the Battle of Starkiller Base. Working primarily in his function as an astromech droid, BB proves instrumental in maintaining Poe's X-Wing throughout the fight. In "The Last Jedi," BB again demonstrates his sidekick worth on the mission to Canto Bight, helping Finn and Rose throughout their adventure.
BB eventually leaves Poe's side and joins Rey on Ajan Kloss, where she undergoes her Jedi training. After Poe's rather simplistic exposition of "Somehow, Palpatine returned," BB joins the heroes as they take the fight to Exegol, where he joins in on the ground assault. After the Resistance succeeds, BB remains by Rey's side as she travels to Tatooine, buries Luke and Leia's lightsabers, and declares herself Rey Skywalker.
8. BD-1
BD-1 (Gideon Emery) first appears in "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order," where he functions as Cal Kestis' (Cameron Monaghan) personal droid. BD-1's backstory is detailed through the first game, showing that he once served Jedi Master Eno Cordova (Tony Amendola) during the Galactic Republic. BD-1 assisted his master in his quest to understand the ancient lost race of the Zeffo and retained a great deal of important data.
When he meets Cal, he's been alone on Bogano for over a dozen years. BD-1 could have powered down and lost his way, but he remained true to his master's plan — wait until he finds someone he can trust. BD-1 trusts Cal almost immediately, though he requires repairs to his various systems. BD-1's functionality improves and increases as the player makes their way through the game.
It's fair to say navigating through the game's many strange environments would be impossible without BD-1. This makes BD-1 an indispensable sidekick and one of the more important droids in the franchise. Another BD, which literally stands for buddy droid, appears in an episode of "The Book of Boba Fett," though this was BD-72, so it's unclear what happened to BD-1 after his adventures with Cal.
7. K-2SO
K-2SO (Alan Tudyk) has an interesting backstory, first appearing in "Rogue One" as Captain Cassian Andor's (Diego Luna) co-pilot, security, sidekick, and comic relief. What's interesting about Kaytoo is that he's not entirely dissimilar to the Terminator, as he is initially programmed to fight anti-imperialists but becomes a trusted ally after he's captured and reprogrammed.
The backstory explaining this appears in "Star Wars: Rogue One: The Ultimate Visual Guide," which shows how Cassian first met Kaytoo, fought him, was choked by him, and ultimately reprogrammed him. In "Rogue One," Kaytoo functions as the comic relief, but he's so much more, and he does whatever is necessary to keep Cassian and his allies alive and able to complete their mission.
At the film's end, while Cassian and Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) work to secure the Death Star plans, Kaytoo fends off a squad of Stormtroopers with a blaster, sustaining many hits. Just before he shuts down, he bids his friends farewell, and Kaytoo destroys the door controls, ensuring their escape. His actions make Kaytoo an essential member of Rogue One and make it possible for the Death Star plans to reach the Rebellion.
6. Din Grogu
Grogu entered the Star Wars franchise in the first episode of "The Mandalorian." He's the bounty Din Djarin seeks on Arvala-7, though he's initially known only as the Child. Initially, Grogu is more of a ward than a sidekick, as he's still quite young. Still, Grogu has a strong connection with the Force, which he uses to aid Mando several times.
As they adventure across the galaxy, Mando hopes to reunite Grogu with his own kind, the Jedi. He eventually finds Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson), who reveals Grogu's name, and she points him to Luke Skywalker, who rescues the Mandalorian and his allies. Luke trains Grogu to become a Jedi, but he ultimately chooses to return to Mando's side and walk the path of the Mandalorian — this is the way.
By this point, Grogu is more of a sidekick than a ward, as his knowledge of the Force has grown. He aids Din Djarin in many ways, including bringing Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) to Mandalore to save his life, and he's helpful in the fight against Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito). He is welcomed into the Children of the Watch as a member of Clan Mudhorn and is dubbed Din Grogu.
5. Huyang
Huyang (David Tennant) is a Mark IV architect droid professor first introduced in "Star Wars: The Clone Wars." He was built over 25,000 years BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin) and served the Jedi Order as the chief instructor in lightsaber construction. He carried out this function aboard the Jedi vessel Crucible. In addition to lightsaber construction, Huyang retained the entire history of the Jedi Order, including every member and their respective lightsabers.
Huyang's knowledge comes in handy long after the Galactic Republic's fall while serving one of the few remaining Jedi, Ahsoka Tano. Of course, by this point, Ahsoka doesn't consider herself a Jedi, but Huyang remains by her side regardless and helps her in many ways. Huyang is her copilot, counselor, friend, and ally.
He assists in training Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) and helps identify Baylan Skoll after examining his lightsaber. Huyang's assistance as Ahsoka's sidekick is undeniable, but he serves an even more essential function. Huyang served the Jedi Order for a thousand generations and retains nearly all of its history. He's an important link to the past, which Darth Sidious largely destroyed when he became the Emperor.
4. C1-10P Chopper
C1-10P, better known as Chopper (Dave Filoni), first appeared in "Star Wars Rebels," where he's a member of the Spectres. Chopper isn't exactly an owned droid, so much as he's a full member of the crew and a rebel in his own right. Still, if he's anyone's sidekick, he'd be Hera Syndulla's (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). As the captain of the Ghost and the de facto leader of the Spectres, Hera gives Chopper orders and scolds him when he's particularly naughty.
Chopper is an instrumental team member whose antics have aided in many missions. He accompanies his fellow Spectres when they're welcomed into Phoenix Squadron, officially becoming a part of the growing Rebel Alliance. Throughout it all, Chopper plays a critical role in many pivotal operations, and he racked up an impressive body count along the way.
His confirmed number of kills is 4,000, with some estimates reaching 50,000. That may sound unbelievable, but it adds up. Chopper blew up two Star Destroyers, and his various antics and interactions with Imperial computers resulted in immense chaos and destruction. After the war, Chopper remained with Hera, dutifully serving his friend and General in the New Republic.
3. C-3PO
C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) made his canonical first appearance in "The Phantom Menace," where fans learned that Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) built him. Of course, fans first met Threepio in "A New Hope," where he's the first character to speak. Threepio has functioned as the comic relief throughout his many appearances, but he's so much more than that. Like his diminutive companion, Threepio took part in nearly every significant event in the franchise.
He started as Anakin's pet project and served his mother, Shmi (Pernilla August), for years. Threepio then became the personal droid of Padmé Amidala (Natalie Portman) and assisted her throughout her time as a senator. After the Clone Wars, Threepio's memory was wiped — something that happens a lot to him. He returned to the Lars family, eventually making him Luke Skywalker's droid.
Threepio was directly involved in the Battle of Endor, where he helped the Rebels take down the shield generator protecting the second Death Star. Later, he served the senator-turned-general Leia Organa in the Resistance. Threepio is the quintessential sidekick in the franchise and served many main characters — one could even argue he's R2-D2's sidekick, from a certain point of view.
2. Chewbacca
Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) is one of the main characters of the original trilogy, but that doesn't mean he's not a sidekick. While Chewie is intelligent, a strong warrior, a great mechanic, and a starship pilot, he's also the one and only sidekick of Han Solo (Harrison Ford). When he first appears in the franchise, he's Han's copilot and fur-covered muscle. Chewie is by Han's side throughout the film and even helps blow up the Death Star.
Chewie's backstory is expanded significantly in subsequent books, comics, and more. Imperials imprisoned Chewie, using him to dispose of undesirable people. This includes Han, whom they attempt to feed to Chewie, but the smuggler's knowledge of Shyriiwook earns him a reprieve from being eaten. From that point, the pair are inseparable and go on many adventures together for years.
Chewie remains at Han's side up to his death at the hands of his son-turned-Sith, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). After Han's death, Chewie moved away from his role as a sidekick and piloted the Millennium Falcon without assistance. He took part in the Battle of Crait against the First Order and slipped back into familiar sidekick territory while helping Rey up to and through the Battle of Exegol.
1. R2-D2
R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) initially serves Queen Amidala aboard her starship and assists in keeping the vessel flying during Naboo's conflict with the Trade Federation. He's recognized for his work by the Queen, and from that point forward, he's a loyal droid who's taken part in many of the galaxy's most significant events. When Padme and Anakin secretly wed, they exchanged droids as wedding gifts, and Artoo dutifully served Anakin throughout the Clone Wars.
After Anakin fell to the dark side of the Force, Artoo served Senator Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits) at the Imperial Senate, once more placing him at the forefront of galactic affairs. While serving the Senator, Artoo joined Princess Leia Organa on her mission to retrieve the Death Star plans, which placed the droid right back in the middle of the fight. He's instrumental in destroying the first and second Death Stars.
When Ben Solo destroys Luke's Jedi Temple, Luke exiles himself. A despondent Artoo shuts himself down into low-power mode. He effectively disabled himself but returned to fighting form to help find Luke. Again, Artoo serves the greater good as Rey's occasional sidekick throughout the First Order-Resistance War, proving himself an indispensable asset and the greatest sidekick of the franchise.