Mace Windu is a fictional character in the Star Wars universe. He is portrayed by actor Samuel L. Jackson in the prequel films.
Mace Windu is one of the earliest named and created characters in Star Wars history, being the narrator of the original 1973 drafts of the original Star Wars film (later named Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope). Through the process of redrafting and copyediting, his character was removed from the original film and its two successors, but he was reintroduced in 1994 when series creator George Lucas began writing the prequel trilogy. When Lucas offered Samuel L.
Jackson the role of Mace Windu, Jackson signed on, but with certain stipulations on the portrayal of his character. One of the conditions was that his character die in a spectacular fashion, rather than be killed off "like some punk."[citation needed]