C-3PO Is One Of The Bad Guys In Every Star Wars Movie
C-3PO and R2-D2 are the only characters to appear in every mainline Star Wars film, from The Phantom Menace to The Rise of Skywalker. While R2-D2 has become something of a hero in the Star Wars universe, the same can’t be said for his outspoken counterpart. From the nasty things he says about his best friend to the xenophobic way he treats certain aliens, it’s time for Star Wars fans to acknowledge that C-3PO is just the worst.
C-3PO Fails At His Primary Function
Everyone knows that C-3PO is, first and foremost, a translator droid, and he performs that function admirably. But that’s not his only purpose. Right from the beginning, the Star Wars movies stress that C-3PO is programmed for etiquette and protocol. Unless etiquette has a different definition in the Star Wars universe, Threepio really sucks at his job.
Constantly Bullying R2-D2
First, you have the absolutely horrid way he talks to his “best friend,” R2-D2. “Near-sighted scrap pile,” and “overweight glob of grease,” are not exactly terms of endearment. The insults are also oddly personal. “Scrap pile” and “glob of grease” make sense since Artoo is a robot, but making fun of the smaller droid’s eyesight and fat-shaming him is taking things a step too far.
Threepio Couldn’t Care Less
But they’re lifetime companions, so Artoo probably gives as good as he gets. The difference is that R2-D2 speaks in bleeps and bloops that most of the other characters don’t understand, so they have no idea what he’s saying to Threepio. The other droid speaks in the basic Star Wars equivalent of English, meaning that everyone not only hears but understands the terrible things C-3PO says about his friend.
The fact that he doesn’t care if people hear him means that he either wants to embarrass Artoo publically as much as he can, or he just doesn’t care if everyone knows he’s a jerk. Either way, old Goldenrod isn’t a very nice guy. But it gets worse.
Racist Towards Jawas
In A New Hope, C-3PO refers to Jawas—a sentient species—as “disgusting creatures.” This is after we see him unceremoniously tossing a Jawa corpse onto a burning pile of other Jawa corpses. Once again, that seems awfully rude and possibly racist for a droid programmed for etiquette.
Now, to be fair, a group of Jawas had kidnapped the two droids earlier in A New Hope, but still, to demonize an entire species for the acts of a few? Threepio, you’re better than that! Just kidding, he’s really not.
Chewbacca Should Have Left C-3PO In Pieces
Just ask Chewbacca. Star Wars’ resident furry is established early on as highly intelligent despite its animalistic appearance, but that doesn’t stop C-3PO from making derogatory comments about not only him but the entire Wookie race.
In the first Star Wars sequel, The Empire Strikes Back, C-3PO is blasted by a stormtrooper and disassembled by Ugnaughts on Cloud City. Chewbacca is the only one who cares and attempts to put the golden droid back together. Does C-3PO thank Chewbacca for saving him from permanent deactivation?
Nope. “I’m backwards, you flea-bitten furball! Only an overgrown mop-head like you would be stupid enough to…” the droid yells at Chewie before the exasperated Wookie shuts him off. Later, when Chewbacca rightfully starts to strangle Lando for betraying Han, C-3PO actually apologizes for Chewie’s actions. In the most offensive way possible, of course.
“I’m terribly sorry about all this, after all, he’s only a Wookie!” Yikes.
Maybe We Should Blame C-3PO’s Creator Instead
Let’s be honest: some of this article is tongue-in-cheek, but replace the word “Wookie” in the above sentence with “woman” or “black,” and it becomes clear just how messed up that statement actually is. Who among us realized that the biggest bigot in Star Wars was unassuming, boring old C-3PO?
But then again, he was programmed by an eight-year-old who later goes on to massacre a camp of Tusken Raiders before murdering dozens of innocent children, so we shouldn’t be surprised.
