Actor Temuera Morrison says he used Māori 'spirit and energy' for his Boba Fett role in Disney+'s Star Wars spinoff The Mandalorian.

Speaking to the New York Times after his full length debut in the hit show’s over the weekend, Morrison talked about how he had returned to the role of bounty hunter Boba Fett.

Morrison, who played Jango Fett in the Star Wars prequels, said he'd always hoped to return to a galaxy far, far away when he'd heard about the series.

”I wasn’t even quite sure what The Mandalorian was about, but I kind of knew that Jango and Boba had their own Mandalorian history.

“At the time, I was in Los Angeles, meeting on another film, so I was pleasantly surprised to get the call. I actually got to the meeting quite early – I was so excited I got there about two hours early – and there were conceptual drawings on the wall.

“I saw an image that looked like me, and I said, I’m sure that’s me. But even then, I didn’t want to get too excited.”

Morrison also said he drew on his own heritage to bring Boba back to life for the streaming service’s spinoff show.

”I come from the Māori nation of New Zealand, the Indigenous people – we’re the Down Under Polynesians – and I wanted to bring that kind of spirit and energy, which we call wairua.

“I’ve been trained in my cultural dance, which we call the haka. I’ve also been trained in some of our weapons, so that’s how I was able to manipulate some of the weapons in my fight scenes and work with the gaffi stick, which my character has," Morrison said.

Morrison also confessed he'd yet to work directly with the star of the show, Baby Yoda.

“Baby Yoda’s probably the biggest actor in Hollywood at the moment, but I never got to work with him very closely or with the people who move him around.

“I was using him in a not-so-good way, as bait. But hopefully I’ll get to meet him and we can have a little bonding session."

The Mandalorian airs on Disney+, with new episodes dropping on Fridays at 9pm.