Dryden Vos
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Dryden Vos
Biographical information
Descriptive information
Species
Pronouns
Eye color
Skin color
Chronological & political information
Affiliation(s)
- "Once you're a part of Crimson Dawn, you can't leave."
- ―Dryden Vos, to Han Solo[2]
Dryden Vos was anear-humanmale who served as the public face of the crime syndicateCrimson Dawn during thereign of theGalactic Empire. He owned theFirst Light, and possessed a large quantity of wealth as Crimson Dawn's figurehead leader. He recruited theCorellianQi'ra to be hisLieutenant, and hiredBeckett's gang to stealcoaxium for him. When he tried to killHan Solo, he was betrayed by Qi'ra, and the two engaged in a quick duel which resulted in Dryden Vos being stabbed and killed.
Biography[]
Clone Wars[]
After replacing hispredecessor,[7] Dryden Vos became the public face of the crime syndicateCrimson Dawn, one of the most ruthless criminal syndicates inthe galaxy[2] during theClone Wars[6] and thereign of theGalactic Empire. However, he secretly answered to theZabrakcrime lord known asMaul, the true leader of Crimson Dawn. To communicate with Maul, Vos used aring to activate thehologram panel.[2] Vos owned aKalevalanyacht known as theFirst Light, where he had a study filled with several relics, including a slab of anobsidian stone he plundered from aSith temple.[3] During the Clone Wars, he was a rising star in the criminal underworld of the galaxy, becoming a key leader for Crimson Dawn and alieutenant in Maul'sShadow Collective alliance.[5]
Maul orders his syndicate's leaders into hiding.
In19 BBY,[8] during the finaldays of theClone Wars, Vos was contacted by Maul via hologram, alongsideMarg Krim of thePyke Syndicate andZiton Moj of theBlack Sun. All leaders in the Shadow Collective, they were instructed by their master to go into hiding, as Maul had foreseen theimminent end of the war, and thechaos that would follow, leading to thecreation of the Galactic Empire.[6]
Imperial Era[]
Dryden Vos's yacht, theFirst Light
During his tenure as crime lord, sometime after13 BBY, Dryden Vos bought theCorellianQi'ra fromSarkin Enneb, who in turn bought her fromLadyProxima, the ruthlessGrindalid crime boss of theWhite Worms gang, who sold Qi'ra after her attempted escape fromCorellia.[9] As such, Vos demanded in return her lifelong loyalty to Crimson Dawn, branding her forearm and her neck with his organization's symbol. Qi'ra became his top lieutenant. He even trained her inmartial arts, includingTeräs Käsi.[2] After Qi'ra became skilled in such arts,[10] she killed Enneb.[9] At some point, Vos additionally made an uneasy alliance with the Pyke Syndicate.[2] On one occasion too, Vos hadraided a warehouse of theRazzi Syndicate and seized low-gradeandrisspice, leading him to consider "squeezing" theHuttZorba to find what he knew about the spice's provenance.[11]
Coaxium Heist[]
Tenyears before theBattle of Yavin, the scoundrelTobias Beckett became indebted to Vos, promising him a good amount ofcoaxium as payment.[2] Prior to his indebtedness, Beckett killed thebounty hunterAurra Sing under Vos' orders, something which pleased Vos enough to give Beckett a bonus.[9] Beckett andhis crew attempted tosteal a container full of coaxium that belonged to the Empire from aconveyex transport. Unfortunately for Beckett, the heist ultimately failed due to the intervention ofEnfys Nest and herswooppirate gang, theCloud-Riders, costing him the cargo and two of his teammates, his loverVal and theArdennian pilotRio Durant. However, his recruit, the youngHan Solo, insisted that he meet Vos to talk with him about what had happened.[2]
Vos speaks with Beckett and Solo.
Upon arriving at Vos' yacht, as Han reunited with Qi'ra, Vos received Beckett and expressed his condolences for the loss of Val, revealing that he knew what happened with the conveyex heist. In his office, Vos told Beckett that he needed to face his wrath for having failed him once more, but Solo attempted to convince Vos to give Beckett another opportunity by sending them to thespice mines ofKessel to steal the coaxium stored there. At first, Vos rejected the plan because he didn't want to anger thePykes, but Qi'ra ultimately convinced him that it was a good idea.[2]
In order to attack the spice mines of Kessel, Beckett's crew enlisted the help of thesmuggler andsabacc playerLando Calrissian and hisdroidL3-37, who brought them to Kessel aboard theMillennium Falcon. There, Beckett's crewinfiltrated Kessel's spice mines, took downQuay Tolsite and hisguards and managed to steal the coaxium, at the cost of L3-37's destruction. After escaping from the Empire's clutches once more in theMaw Cluster,[2] making theKessel Run in just twelveparsecs,[12] the crew arrived atSavareen to refine the coaxium. After Lando departed with theFalcon and the crew encountered Nest, learning of her intentions to help the rebellion with the coaxium, Solo decided to deceive Vos and give the coaxium to the Cloud-Riders. He and Qi'ra took the coaxium to Vos, telling him that Beckett did not survive the mission.[2]
Vos drives his petar into Qi'ra's vibrocutlass
To their surprise, Vos revealed that he knew the coaxium aboard his yacht was fake, and that he was warned by his "inside man" about Han's betrayal. Though Han initially believed that Qi'ra betrayed them, Vos revealed that his "inside man" was in fact Beckett, who decided to betray his crew so that Vos spared his life. However, as they anticipated Beckett's betrayal, Solo had presented the true shipment of coaxium to Vos, and had only told Beckett it was fake. Nevertheless, Beckett resolved to take Chewie hostage and escape with the real coaxium,leaving Vos to face Qi'ra and Han, leading to a fight in which Vos accidentally destroyed several artifacts in his study, including themasthead of Xim the Despot.[2] In the midst of Han and Vos' attempts to kill each other, Qi'ra came to Han's defense by attacking Vos with avibrocutlass retrieved from the corpse ofToht Ra, one of theHylobon Enforcers.[13] In the fierce scuffle between the two, Vos cut the blade of his opponent's sword in half, which resulted inhis own weapon getting stuck. Unarmed and defenseless, Vos was finally impaled by Qi'ra and dropped to the floor,dead. After promising Han that she would take valuables from the yacht and meet him outside, Qi'ra instead sealed the room after Han's departure and used Vos' ring to falsely tell Maul that Tobias Beckett had been responsible for Vos' death, and was ordered to take the yacht toDathomir.[2]
Personality and traits[]
- "Test me! Test me one more time and you'll see what happens."
- ―Dryden Vos[2]
Vos stands over the corpse ofDiles Anevi.
Anear-humanmale crime lord, Dreyden Vos hadBlond hair, blueeyes, light skin[2] and was 1.92meters (6feet, 4 inches) tall.[5] Vos was a pitiless enforcer and known as agangster of taste and wealth. Vos socialized with the galaxy's elite aboard his yacht theFirst Light, surrounding himself with opulence. In addition, Vos enjoyed showing off his superb collection of antiquities. His wealth and status was also displayed in the food he enjoyed, including delicacies such ascolo claw fish eggs. Being near-human, Dryden had a number of alien attributes such as a claw that extended from his thumb and many intricate striations ran along his face that were connected to the activity in his circulatory system and adrenaline levels.[3] In moments of stress and rage, Dryden's scar-like marks would become more pronounced and bright and his eyes would appear bloodshot.[2]
Though Vos was known for being ruthless, albeit not a cutthroat,[4] he displayed good manners with his guests, as he showed when he met Han Solo.[2] Nevertheless, his manners weren't to be mistaken for weakness, as he could change from a generous host to merciless killer in a moment.[4] Beyond that, however, Vos was simply one more lackey of the crime lord Maul, the true leader of Crimson Dawn behind the shadows.[2]
Skills and abilities[]
Dryden Vos was an expert martial artist. He was specifically trained by Maul in Teräs Käsi, a form designed specifically to combat Force-wielders. To compliment this, Vos favored a pair of twin petar blades, which left him at a disadvantage from a distance, but gave him frightening versatility up close. As a Teräs Käsi practitioner, Vos excelled in close-quarters combat, as showcased when he easily fought and disarmed Han Solo.[3] Thanks to these abilities, Vos was able to easily outfight Han Solo (who was armed with a blaster pistol), as well as hold his own against Qi'ra; albeit eventually losing, he managed to force her to a defensive position with his attacks. Vos also excelled in leadership,[2] negotiations, persuasion and intimidation.[5]
Behind the scenes[]
Milestones[]
Dryden Vos was portrayed byPaul Bettany in the2018Star Wars Anthology filmSolo: A Star Wars Story.[14] The character was originally going to be played byMichael Kenneth Williams as a motion-captured alien character resembling amountain lion,[15] but when the original directorsPhil Lord andChristopher Miller were fired from the project and replaced byRon Howard, Williams wasn't available for extended reshoots due to scheduling conflicts withGideon Raff's2019 filmThe Red Sea Diving Resort, so the part was recast with Bettany.[16] Though he has the same last name asJedi MasterQuinlan Vos,Lucasfilm has confirmed that this is merely a coincidence.[17]
Vos would make his animated debut in theStar Wars: The Clone WarsSeason Seven episode "The Phantom Apprentice,"[6] which was first released onDisney+ inApril 24,2020.[18] Vos's appearance, along with that of his fellow syndicate leaders Marg Krim and Ziton Moj, was added late into development, during the episode's animation phase. In order to create his animation model, the team used a background Mandalorian citizen, a Mandalorianminister, and the hair of[19]Jedi Master[6]Obi-Wan Kenobi.[19] In2021, Bettany expressed an interest in returning to the role of Vos in a television series.[20]
Development[]
Concept art of Dryden Vos' original appearance by Ivan Manzella
One of the inspirations for Dryden Vos was the character Leo fromMichael Mann's1981 filmThief. Coincidentally, Leo's portrayerRobert Prosky collaborated alongSolo director Ron Howard in the1992 filmFar and Away. Another of the character's influences wasDon Draper, the protagonist ofAMC's drama seriesMad Men.[21] The first draft of the film's script described Vos like a sort ofTom Hagen, one of the main characters ofThe Godfather film series.[22] Interestingly, the originalStar Wars films inspired Bettany to become an actor in the first place.[23] The film's crew wanted Vos to be, physically, the antithesis ofJabba Desilijic Tiure, the Hutt crime lord of1983'sStar Wars: Episode VIReturn of the Jedi.[24]
Early concept art for Vos depicted him as an avianalien, then a reptilian alien, and finally aLasat, which was possibly the version depicted originally by Williams. In the original draft of the film's script, Vos was going to be based onTaanab.[21] According to Paul Bettany, Vos' facial marks were done byCGI and that he just discovered it when Howard sent him a photograph.[23]Jake Lunt Davies recalls that maybeDava Cassamam's design started off as one possible for Vos.[25] The facial marks, which turn red when Dryden gets angry, are similar to those possessed byNaare, a character fromLEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures, aStar Wars TV series which began in2016, two years prior toSolo: A Star Wars Story. The similarity was noted byLeland Chee, a member of theLucasfilm Story Group,[26] but he made sure to mention this did not make the two canonically related.[27]
Appearances[]
Sources[]
Notes and references[]
External links[]
Solo: A Star Wars Story soars on this week's EW cover onEntertainment Weekly (backup link archived onJuly 13,2020)(First identified as Dryden Vos)