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By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
One of the most interesting Star Wars supporting characters is Asajj Ventress, the murderous Sith who frequently tormented the Republic during the Clone Wars cartoon. She initially served as Anakin Skywalker’s dark counterpart, one who trained under Count Dooku just as the young Jedi trained under Obi-Wan Kenobi. Eventually, her story took some weird twists and turns: after being betrayed by Darth Sidious and Count Dooku, she tries to find a home with the Nightsisters and even some sleazy bounty hunters, including Boba Fett. Eventually, she has a face turn, ultimately helping to save Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ashoka, two Jedi who were once her sworn enemies.
While Asajj Ventress benefited from good writing, it was her voice actor, Nika Futterman, who really brought this complex villain to life. Futterman is an accomplished actor who has voiced some of the genre’s best characters, including Hawkgirl and Catwoman. However, what even the biggest Star Wars fans don’t realize is that Futterman helped connect their favorite franchise to one of the most beloved and most controversial bands of the ‘90s. You see, long before she voiced a Sith apprentice, Futterman sang the “give it to me baby” part of the hit Offspring song “Pretty Fly (For a White Guy).”
Nothing Ventress, Nothing Gained
Like many voice actors, Nika Futterman has had a very unconventional career. Since the mid-90’s, she has voiced characters in just about every geeky franchise under the sun. This includes Marvel, DC, Ninja Turtles, Scooby-Doo, and so many more. In 2008, she voiced Star Wars character Asajj Ventress in the Clone Wars movie, a role that carried over to the Clone Wars television show. Her casting was a pleasant surprise, as Ventress had been previously voiced by Grey DeLisle in the earlier, 2D Clone Wars show. Futterman has gone the distance in a galaxy far, far away and continued voicing Asajj Ventress in the Star Wars shows Tales of the Underworld and The Bad Batch.
Early in Futterman’s career, she dabbled in music. Her most notable achievement in this arena included performing in the hit 1998 Offspring song “Pretty Fly (For a White Guy”). Futterman doesn’t sing along with the band, exactly; instead, she provides the iconic refrain “give it to me, baby!” that arguably makes the song so memorable. While the song proved to be immensely popular, some found it offensive because most of its humor was based on race. Specifically, the song is filled with tongue-in-cheek references to the titular white guy desperately trying (and failing) to be cool by doing things like buying Vanilla Ice records and cruising around in a Pinto.
Give It To Her, Baby!
The song was a breakout hit for The Offspring, a band that made a name for itself with vulgar lyrics that celebrated aggressive behavior and mocked everything from poser culture to authoritarian posturing. As such, they were considered highly offensive by conservative critics of the ‘90s, which, in retrospect, isn’t really fair. If you can get past the foul language and songs about sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll, you are left with a successful band that simply helped make punk attitudes and aesthetics mainstream. In terms of punk, these guys are infinitely less offensive than, say, hardcore punk legend GG Allin.
Whether you hate or celebrate The Offspring, their connection to Star Wars is wonderfully surreal. One year before The Phantom Menace hit theaters, the woman who would ultimately voice the prequels’ coolest spinoff character was singing an infectiously catchy, hilariously suggestive refrain for the most vulgar bop of the decade. In its own way, that song was even prophetic when it comes to the Chosen One of a galaxy far, far away: Anakin Skywalker. This angry young man might never have been granted the rank of Master, but even the stodgiest members of the Council can agree on one thing: he is pretty fly, for a white guy!
