A Santa Clarita actor who starred as an Ewok in the original Star Wars trilogy is set to make an appearance at Brave New World Comics Saturday to be inducted into the 501st Legion and sign autographs for fans.

Kevin Thompson, who played the Ewok Chubbray in “Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi,” will be at Brave New World Comics from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.

“I was a Star Wars fan,” Thompson said. “I was a closet geek. I didn’t want any of my friends to know about it, but when I watched the first one I was hooked.”

Thompson had been a gymnast and a wrestler in high school. He was 22 years old when he tried out for the part. During auditions, he was told he was trying out for a standalone movie code-named “Blue Harvest.”

“The line underneath the title was ‘Horror Beyond Imagination,’” Thompson said. “The joke was that they never imagined it.”

At the time, the production team kept the movie a secret because someone had previously stolen the script for the Star Wars movie, “The Empire Strikes Back,” and leaked the ending.

“It was crazy because at first they didn’t let us know what it was,” Thompson said. “They kept saying it was a stand-alone movie.”

When Thompson was cast in the part, he went right to work in a fast-paced stunt environment.

“The first time you see me, I do the long rope swing into the village,” Thompson said. “We were kind of doing, as close as it can be, military reenactments. Nothing was live, but there were real chances that people could have gotten hurt or killed.”

In addition to playing numerous Ewoks in the Star Wars films, Thompson has also appeared in several other major movies such as “Blade Runner and Weird Science,” as well as television shows including “Boy Meets World” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”

“I came in as an extra,” Thompson said about his first-ever role in Blade Runner. “They realized I didn’t complain, so they called me back and they had a stunt. Later, they came back and said ‘Ridley has written you a part.’”

Director Ridley Scott gave Thompson a part as a toy bear in the film.

“My first ever line was, ‘Home again, home again, jiggity jig. Welcome home Jeff,’” Thompson said. “A while ago, one of my friends called me up and said, ‘Hey, they made homage to your character in Blade Runner 2049. You have to be quick to catch it, but a truck runs by and says, Jiggity Jig.’”

During his appearance at the local Santa Clarita comic books store, the Star Wars actor will also be inducted into the 501st Legion, a worldwide Star Wars philanthropy organization comprised of and operated by Star Wars fans, by Steven Hekeler of the legion’s Bluegrass Garrison.

“When I met him, he had a whole Endor scene at Orlando,” Thompson said. “He was raising money for a local charity, so I started signing pictures and giving part of the profits to his charity.”

Thompson’s career can be summarized by his own motto that he lives by: “No role is too small for Kevin, and Kevin is not too small for any role.”

“Just to get my foot in the door, I like to get there on set, and many times it turns into something bigger,” Thompson said. “Little people are one of those things that people don’t think about. Even today, you don’t have that scene of a little people family on TV, on a sitcom, or anything like that.”

Autographs on any items are $10 per signature, which is discounted from Thompson’s normal fee in honor of the event.

A limited supply of Ewok graphic novels and Chubbray toys will also be available to purchase at the event, and attendees can bring their own items for signatures at the cost of $10 per signature.

The first 30 attendees will have the opportunity to receive a free Ewok arrowhead donated by Thompson.

For more information regarding the event, click here, or check out Brave New World Comics’ social media at @BNWComics on Facebook and Instagram, and @BNWComicsCA on Twitter.

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