Favreau and Filoni had written the fourth season of The Mandalorian by February 2023, but production on the season was delayed by the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike and the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. During this time, Lucasfilm re-evaluated their plans for the franchise and decided to prioritize a Mandalorian film over the season. It was announced in January 2024. Filming began in California by August 2024 and was completed by that December.
The Mandalorian & Grogu is scheduled to be released in the United States on May 22, 2026.
Grogu: The Mandalorian's ward who is an infant of the same species as Yoda. Grogu is created with animatronics and puppetry (augmented with visual effects).[2][3]
The Mandalorian's bounty at the start of the series is "the Child"—colloquially known as "Baby Yoda" by viewers—an infant of the same species as Yoda, created with animatronics and puppetry (augmented with visual effects). He becomes the Mandalorian's ward,[2] and is revealed to be named Grogu in the second season.[13] In September 2020, The Mandalorian co-star Giancarlo Esposito said the second season lays the groundwork for "the depth and breadth that's going to come in season 3 and season 4".[14] The next month, Favreau and star Pedro Pascal said they were open to the Mandalorian appearing in a Star Wars film, but Favreau was in no rush to do this.[15] Favreau began writing the fourth season by late May 2022,[16] and completed the scripts with Filoni by February 2023.[17] Filming for the season was scheduled to begin that September, but this was delayed by the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike and the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.[18][19][20] In November, Filoni revealed that he was now chief creative officer at Lucasfilm and would be directly involved in the planning of future films and series.[21]
Development
While production on the fourth season was delayed by the Writers Guild and SAG-AFTRA strikes, Lucasfilm re-evaluated their plans for the franchise and decided to prioritize a Mandalorian film instead.[20] The studio announced the film, titled The Mandalorian & Grogu, in January 2024. Favreau was set to direct, co-write with Filoni, and produce with Kennedy and Filoni.[3][20]Ian Bryce was also serving as a producer.[22] Filming was expected to begin that June.[1] Pascal celebrated the announcement on Instagram by sharing concept art for the film.[23] He was expected to reprise his role as the voice of the Mandalorian, but it was unclear whether he would be physically portraying the character—whose face is generally hidden with a helmet—and some questioned whether his busy schedule had room for the production.[1][23] It was also unclear whether the fourth season would still be made because there was potential for future Mandalorian stories to instead be told through film sequels if the first film was a success.[20] During an earnings call in early February, Disney CEO Bob Iger said the film would likely be released in 2026 and would start a new slate of Star Wars films.[24] Later that month, California allocated the production $21,755,000 in tax credits from the state's filming tax incentive program, one of the biggest allocations in the program's history. The film was expected to be entirely produced in the state, a first for the Star Wars franchise, and would generate over $166 million in qualified expenditures and below-the-line wages there.[25] In April, Disney scheduled the film for release on May 22, 2026, filling the May 2026 date that the studio had previously reserved for an untitled Star Wars film.[26] The next month, Sigourney Weaver was in talks to join the cast.[27]
Filming
Principal photography was scheduled to begin in June 2024 in California,[1][25] under the working titleThunder Alley,[28] and was expected to take 92 days.[25] The film had approximately 54 cast members, 3,500 background extras, and 500 crew members.[25] Favreau and Filoni said in early August that filming had begun several weeks earlier,[29] when the character Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios from the animated series Star Wars Rebels was revealed to be appearing along with the Anzellan species from the film Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) and the third season of The Mandalorian. A new version of the Razor Crest, the Mandalorian's ship which was destroyed in the second season of the series, was also set to appear in the film.[7][8] Weaver confirmed her casting at the end of the month.[4] Filming wrapped by the start of December 2024.[30]
Post-production
In mid-December, Jonny Coyne was revealed to be reprising his role as an Imperial Warlord from the third season of The Mandalorian.[6] By then, Jeremy Allen White was cast to provide the voice of Rotta the Hutt, a character first introduced in the animated film Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008).[5]
Marketing
Favreau and Filoni presented initial footage from the film at Disney's D23 convention in August 2024,[7][8] and more footage was shown at D23 Brasil in November with Favreau and Filoni appearing via a video message from the film's set.[31]
Release
The Mandalorian & Grogu is scheduled to be released in the United States on May 22, 2026.[26]
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