Mos Espa was a spaceport settlement located on the desert world of Tatooine. The settlement included a number of commercial and workspace settings, as well as entertainment establishments such as the Mos Espa Grand Arena. During the Invasion of Naboo, Mos Espa was also home to a number of slaves, including Anakin Skywalker and his mother, Shmi.
One of the few portcities on the Outer Rimplanet of Tatooine, Mos Espa filled with dwellings, workplaces, and commercial operations of many kinds, along with entertainment venues, some of which were grandiose in size. The Mos Espa Grand Arena, home to the Boonta Eve Classic podrace, could seat an audience numbering almost as many as the city’s entire population. Because the Hutts controlled Mos Espa and found the institution of slavery to be very useful, slaves were often traded within the city. One such slave trader was the Toydarian Watto, who owned a parts store within the city. The city center was located in a crater.
Mos Espa made its first canon appearance in the 1999 film Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace. It then appeared in the 2002 film Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones.