Is Emilia Clarke coming to The Book of Boba Fett?

The reason we bring this up is that rumour has it another character could be about to get a second chance – Emilia Clarke’s Q’ira, as seen in Han Solo prequel Solo: A Star Wars Story. You remember – she was Han Solo’s (Alden Ehrenreich) childhood friend and love interest, who turned out to be a criminal sub-boss working for Darth Maul.

Han didn’t find out Q’ira’s final allegiances during the film, presumably setting up a sequel that never came when Solo became Star Wars’ first flop back in 2018. We never properly found out what Q’ira did next – and we know how much Lucasfilm hates an unresolved plot thread.

The word on the street (well, Mos Espa’s streets) for a while has been that the Game of Thrones star might reprise her character in new Disney Plus series The Book of Boba Fett, and the latest episode provided a new hint that these reports might be more than wishful thinking.

During episode 3, it’s revealed that the Hutts claiming Jabba’s territory are leaving, as another interested party has been promised ownership as well. Boba declines their advice to leave too, and finds that a group of Pykes (the spice-running aliens seen in episode 2) seem to be the masterminds behind this new power grab.

But could this just be the first step towards a bigger twist? After all, this is already the second fake-out in terms of Boba’s true opposition on Tattooine (first we thought the mayor, then the Hutts, now it’s the Pykes), and some fans have noted that the Pykes aren’t usually depicted as powerful crime bosses who could stake a claim to another planet – they mainly just control their home world and the supply of spice to other syndicates.

So perhaps this is another misdirect, and the Pykes are a smokescreen for the return of the syndicate Q’ira worked for – The Crimson Dawn, once run by the now-dead Darth Maul (he survived The Phantom Menace but was killed in animated series Star Wars Rebels – keep up). By the time of the Original Star Wars trilogy, it was controlled by Q’ira, as seen in various official Star Wars comics where her story has continued.

If you think about it, her return would make a lot of sense. The Book of Boba Fett is all about organised crime and crime bosses – so who better to involve than one of Star Wars’ remaining canonical mob leaders, played by an internationally famous actor (who might also still have some Star Wars projects she’s contracted for)?

In the comics, Q’ira (styled as Lady Q’ira) has been known for hiding her identity behind disguises and other people before, has offered services to other syndicates (so could have done the same to the Pyke syndicate) and has played rivals off against each other, as we’ve seen in the first two episodes of The Book of Boba Fett. She’s also (again, in the comics) fought Darth Vader, which could mean Clarke could get some fun action scenes if she were to turn up later in the series.

And given that The Book of Boba Fett has heavily drawn from the Star Wars comics already, thanks to the appearance of Wookiee bounty hunter Krrsantan, a continuation of her on-page story seems eminently possible.

Altogether, an appearance from Clarke’s Solo character would make sense, as well as being a buzzy, internet-friendly return that would have everybody talking about the show. So far the evidence is circumstantial, but we wouldn’t be surprised if Solo wasn’t the last we saw of Q’ira in live-action. Watch this (particular area of non-Hutt) space.

The Book of Boba Fett releases new episodes on Wednesdays. For more, check out our dedicated Sci-Fi page or our full TV Guide.