Star Wars: Best Bounty Hunters From The Prequel Era, Ranked

Star Wars is known for containing some of the most recognizable and popular bounty hunters in all of pop culture. Whether discussing the titular bounty hunter headling The Book of Boba Fett or any of the hunters who appeared in the Original Trilogy, there’s no end to talented, deadly bounty hunters in the Star Wars universe.

While fan-favorite characters like Boba Fett, Dengar, and Bossk may be more well-known for their roles in serving the Empire, it’s also worth noting how many bounty hunters were active during the Prequel Era as well. These older hunters were just as dangerous as their later counterparts, and were able to find employment among the Separatists or even directly from Sith lords, Count Dooku and Darth Sidious.

Derrown

Also known as “The Exterminator,” Derrown might be more well-known as a minor member on the team assembled by Count Dooku and led by Cad Bane to kidnap Chancellor Palpatine from his Naboo palace.

However small his role on Bane’s team was, Derrown’s appearance itself was memorable, thanks mostly to his unique physical presence. Considered to be one of the best bounty hunters in the galaxy, this Parwan assassin is characterized by his mushroom-like head, tentacle limbs, three eyes, and his species’ ability to generate short-range electrical fields.

Zam Wesell

Zam Wesell is one of the first bounty hunters fans see in the Prequel Trilogy, a subcontractor hired by Jango Fett to carry out assassinations, such as the plot to kill Padmé Amidala on Coruscant.

A Clawdite, Zam was known for her ability to physically change her appearance, usually taking on the appearance of a young female human. As a bounty hunter, she preferred long-range combat techniques, such as probe droids, venomous insects, and sniper rifles. Zam came very close to completing her mission and assassinating Padmé twice, and very nearly got away when Obi-Wan and Anakin chased her, but was ultimately caught and killed by Fett before she can reveal any vital information about her employer.

Rako Hardeen

Rako Hardeen himself had a very small appearance in the Clone Wars as a bounty hunter hired by the Jedi to stage Obi-Wan’s “death.” Initially believing he had succeeded, Hardeen would be arrested when he came face to face with his employers, with Obi-Wan soon altering his appearance and pretending to be Hardeen in an undercover assignment from the Jedi.

Little is known about Hardeen, although his reputation as a bounty hunter precedes him. Known as “the Marksman of Concord Dawn,” he was considered a talented enough bounty hunter to earn a place on Dooku’s team to kidnap the Chancellor.

Embo

A more reserved, quiet bounty hunter than many others, Embo is known by his ability to work under any circumstance he finds himself in. A skilled combatant, he has flourished while being a member of a team, but also works extremely well alone. Sometimes, he fights for a noble cause, such as working with Sugi to protect a small farm from Hondo Ohnaka’s gang. Other times, he works purely for money, such as joining with the ruthless bounty hunter, Cad Bane, on several occasions.

Embo has a highly original combat style and physical appearance that he uses for missions. His wide-brimmed hat can double as both a shield or as a weapon, Captain America-style. He also favored using a bowcaster as a weapon, and has been shown to be an extremely effective tracker, sometimes assisted by a pet Anooba, Marrok. He’s a Star Wars bounty hunter fans have enjoyed seeing and who deserves further attention in the future.

Bossk

Bossk is a name well-known in Star Wars for being a notorious bounty hunter who operated both during the Prequel Era and the Original Trilogy Era. While he appears as a seasoned veteran hunter by the time of Empire Strikes Back, he is also known for his career during the Clone Wars as well.

Along with Aurra Sing, Bossk took to mentoring a young Boba Fett after his father’s death, even trying to help Boba avenge Jango’s death by killing Mace Windu. Though their plot was unsuccessful, Bossk remained loyal to Boba, acting as a bodyguard of sorts for the young hunter, and eventually joining Fett’s faction, Krayt’s Claw. Though he was always highly dangerous on his own, his loyalty to Boba reveals a potentially soft side to Bossk’s character–one that would eventually harden when Boba became a chief rival during the Imperial Era.

Asajj Ventress

Asajj Ventress may be more well-known as a Sith acolyte and would-be apprentice to Count Dooku, and a frequent adversary to Obi-Wan and Anakin during the height of the Clone Wars. After Sidious sensed her growing strength in the ways of the Force, he ordered Dooku to kill her. While the Count nearly succeeded, ultimately Ventress escaped, severing her ties with the Sith and the Separatists in the process.

Returning to her homeworld of Dathomir, Ventress struggled to find her place in the galaxy now that her dreams of becoming a Sith were destroyed. Eventually, she would take up bounty hunting, joining fellow bounty hunters within Boba Fett’s Krayt’s Claw. Force-using bounty hunters were a rarity in themselves, as was someone who chose to use lightsabers as her primary weapons. Her background and knowledge of the Force became indispensable when it came to completing her various assignments during the final days of the Clone Wars.

Aurra Sing

The first bounty hunter seen in the Prequel Trilogy (she observes the Tatooine podrace that a young Anakin participates in), Aurra Sing is also easily one of the cruel and ruthless bounty hunters who operated during the Clone Wars.  A skilled long-range sniper, Sing unofficially adopted a young Boba Fett after his father’s death, raising him to be a bounty hunter in his own right.

As Fett’s mentor, she tried to teach him to be as unfeeling as possible in his duties–something that she herself showed no qualms about, such as killing captured or wounded clone soldiers. After Fett showed signs that he didn’t have the heart to be as ruthless as Sing, Sing abandoned him, and would later find assignments alongside the equally cold bounty hunter, Cad Bane.

Boba Fett

Boba Fett may have reached his career peak during the reign of the Empire, but he is also known for entering the bounty hunter profession and making a name for himself while just a teenager. After the death of his father, Boba was looked after by Aurra Sing and Bossk, who introduced him to their shared profession, mentoring him in the ways of becoming a bounty hunter.

Hailing from Kamino, one of the most important planets in all of Star Wars, Boba may have lacked the outright merciless tact of Sing, but he still became a skilled combatant with a tactical, intelligent mind. It takes immense talent to become the head of a bounty hunting gang as Boba managed to do with Krayt’s Claw, and yet Boba managed to back up his talent and prove his mettle on various assignments, living up to the Fett name in the process.

Cad Bane

Similar to the reputation Boba Fett commanded during the Galactic Civil War, Cad Bane was the bounty hunter during the Clone Wars. Cold, calculating, and nearly sociopathic, this unmoving Duros bounty hunter would do whateve it took to finish a job, and was renowned for his effiency, intelligence, and lack of pit or remorse.

After Jango Fett’s death on Geonosis, Bane became known as the most deadly bounty hunter in the galaxy–someone who was more than able to hold his own against clone troopers and Jedi alike. Time and time again, he’s faced some of the most powerful Jedi Knights there is–including Obi-Wan and Anakin–and come out on top. Cad Bane’s outfit even contained numerous small details that gave him an edge over opponents, such as leg boosters and bulletproof armoring. Years before Bane’s work with the Pyke Syndicate, this space cowboy was regularly besting the greatest warriors the Republic threw at him.

Jango Fett

Jango Fett was one of Star Wars fans’ favorite characters in the Prequel Trilogy. While he lacked the screen time of other characters, Jango–much like his son in the Original Trilogy–made a huge impression on audiences from the get-go, appearing as an efficient, skilled bounty hunter able to go head-to-head with the strongest Jedi.

Though Fett was never officially active during the Clone Wars–he died in the conflict’s first battle, and never actually fought his genetically recreated clones–the Mandalorian warrior showed his skills at long-range and hand-to-hand fighting, and even his impressive piloting skills. The fact that Fett remained the primary clone template for the Republic’s army despite his allegiance to the Separatists is proof of his immense talent as a soldier and fighter, paving the way for fan-favorite Star Wars clones years after his death.