May 4, Star Wars Day 0:41
(CNN) -
Before we all fawned over the incredibly cute Grogu/Baby Yoda in the first episode of "The Mandalorian," another sweet, big-eared creature had already made its way into our hearts.
Gizmo the Mogwai, the cute, furry, wide-eyed puppet, is undoubtedly the star of the 1984 horror comedy "Gremlins" and its sequel.
And more than 30 years after the original film's debut, "Gremlins" director Joe Dante told the San Francisco Chronicle that he believes Grogu, who audiences met in 2019, was entirely based on the lovable character. Gizmo.
"Baby Yoda... is completely stolen and just copied" from the cutest "Gremlins" character, Dante told the Chronicle before the screening of both "Gremlins" movies.
"Shamelessly, I would say."
It's Gizmo vs.
Grogu in the battle of cute alien babies.
One is a Mogwai, the other is a Jedi, but "Gremlins" director Joe Dante said Gizmo, who got there first, is clearly the inspiration for Grogu.
The two aliens certainly share more than a few similarities: Physically, they both have protruding ears that are disproportionately large for their tiny body structures;
they communicate with coos and gurgles and fiercely defend the father figures in their lives.
(It is unclear if Grogu goes insane if he is doused with water, though his predecessor Yoda lived on the swamp planet of Dagobah and only went mildly insane, so he may not share this with Gizmo.)
For their part, the showrunners of "The Mandalorian" have named Gizmo's different inspirations for Grogu, namely "ET" and the movie "Paper Moon," in which a con-artist duo play father and son.
But fans have noted the resemblance between the two ever since Grogu debuted.
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While Gizmo never reached the levels of international adoration that Grogu did in a few short years, he still has a devoted fan base.
"Gremlins" star Zach Galligan told Entertainment Weekly last year that he thought "[his] friend of his is cuter," in large part because Gizmo is cute and furry and Grogu bald and smooth.
While Grogu keeps quiet and busy in the growing galaxy of Disney+'s "Star Wars" series, Gizmo will also be making a big return to the screen this year, soon appearing in animated form in the HBO Max series "Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai".
Ironically, the new series stars "The Mandalorian" actress Ming-Na Wen, whose character is an ally to a certain little green Jedi-in-training.
(CNN and HBO Max are part of Warner Bros. Discovery)
Baby Yoda