| “ | You threaten my daughter, and accuse her of treason? For years, I've watched you put your greed and self-interests above Ryloth. You are the one guilty of treason. | „ |
| ~ Cham Syndulla to Taa on his selfish and corrupt nature. |
Orn Free Taa is a recurring antagonist in the Star Wars franchise, appearing as a background character in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, a recurring character in the 2008-2020 animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and a minor antagonist in both the 2021 animated webseries Star Wars: The Bad Batch and the 2015 novel Lords of the Sith.
Orn Free Taa was an obese Twi'lek male who represented his homeworld Ryloth as a Senator in the Galactic Senate during the final years of the Galactic Republic. Taa represented everything that was wrong with the waning Republic, as he was a corrupt and indulgent politician who put the needs of himself above the needs of his own people. When the Republic was reformed into the Galactic Empire, Senator Taa appeased the Imperials in the hopes that it would allow him to keep his position of power.
Senator Taa was portrayed by Jerome Blake in The Phantom Menace and by Matt Rowan in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. In animated media, Taa was voiced by Phil LaMarr. Blake also portrays Mas Amedda in The Phantom Menace. LaMarr also voices Samurai Jack in the series of the same name, and Aquaman, Dormammu, and Green Lantern (John Stewart) in various media.
Biography
Revenge of the Sith
In the final days of the Clone War, Coruscant was attacked by an enormous Separatist fleet. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine was kidnapped by General Grievous in the chaos, although Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi were able to rescue the Chancellor and kill the Separatist Head of State Count Dooku aboard the Separatist flagship. The Separatist forces were subsequently routed and Senator Taa joined a collection of delegates who welcomed Palpatine upon his safe return to the Senate building.
The Twi'lek Senator was present in the Senate days later when Palpatine claimed the Jedi Order had been branded traitors and executed en masse by the Clone army after they had allegedly attempted to assassinate him and seize power. The Supreme Chancellor declared that, to preserve peace and order, the Republic would be reorganized into the Galactic Empire with himself serving as its Emperor.
In reality however, Palpatine's new empire quickly proved to be a dictatorship that enforced unfair laws upon its citizenry.
