The Mandalorian's first season is over on Disney+, but the longevity of the Baby Yoda meme is proving to be substantial. Everyone loves the adorable little alien, even if their name isn't actually Yoda and calling them a baby isn't really appropriate since they're over 50 years old. Even Baby Yoda isn't immune to being overwhelmed by a more popular meme, though. That said, Disney likely never predicted a baby-sized version of another Star Wars character could steal Baby Yoda's momentum.
Baby Jabba, as in Jabba the Hutt, briefly stole the spotlight from Baby Yoda. It started as a piece of awesome 3D art from an Italian artist named Leo Viti and then filtered through social media. As the name implies, it's a baby version of the villainous worm best known for its role in Star Wars Episode 6: Return of the Jedi. Baby Jabba has already been met with some controversy, as fans can't agree whether the creature is actually cute, or if it should be seen as the gross monster that it'll grow up to be.
While Baby Jabba did grow popular on Reddit initially, the character spread like wildfire after being shared by actress Olivia Munn on Instagram. It was after Munn's share and the character's spread on Twitter that various media outlets began to share the image, too. In the days since, the character hasn't had as much meme virality as Baby Yoda, but it did have its moment. It's likely a hint that more baby versions of Star Wars characters are on the way.
Part of the reason Baby Jabba hasn't grown as virally valuable as Baby Yoda is that the character hasn't been made into a specific form of meme. Folk can't seem to agree on the best way to make Baby Jabba funny, outside of commenting on whether he's actually cute or not. Still, some folk on the internet have come up with a few fun ideas.
Funnily enough, there already exists a Baby Jabba in Star Wars canon. The character in question is actually the progeny of Jabba the Hutt - his son. Rotta is a character in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated film. Protagonist Ahsoka Tano rescues Rotta after he's kidnapped, nicknaming the child "Stinky." Rotta is considerably less adorable than Baby Jabba is, for better or worse.
The Mandalorian's first season is available now exclusively through Disney+.