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The Mandalorian

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209-523: The Mandalorian is an American space Western television series created by Jon Favreau for the streaming service Disney+ . It is the first live-action series in the Star Wars franchise and begins five years after the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983). It follows a lone bounty hunter who protects a Force -sensitive child, Grogu , from remnant Imperial forces. Pedro Pascal stars as

418-478: A Star Wars television series featuring Mandalorians to Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy . Dave Filoni , executive producer on the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels , had also been conceiving a Mandalorian-focused series, and Kennedy suggested that he and Favreau meet to discuss their ideas. Favreau and Filoni had previously met at the Skywalker Ranch when Favreau

627-498: A krayt dragon which had been attacking Mos Pelgo, in exchange for his armor. Along the way the pair arrange an uneasy alliance between the townspeople and a Tusken Raider tribe. The Mandalorian developed a deep respect for Vanth, to the point he entrusts him to look after Grogu, should he perish during his attempt to kill the dragon. In " Chapter 10: The Passenger ", the Mandalorian and Grogu leave for Trask, where they must take

836-471: A manga about a samurai warrior and his young son. Favreau acknowledged Lone Wolf and Cub as an influence in an episode of Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian . The Mandalorian's parental role in the series makes him a softer and more relatable character; he changes in a positive way because of raising the Child, becoming less selfish and self-absorbed. He risked his life and drastically changed his career as

1045-402: A nature versus nurture argument to this, contending Grogu is becoming violent because of what he is learning based on the actions around him. This suggests Grogu is not inherently good or evil, but that instead, like all children, he is impressionable and does not fully understand the events occurring around him. He is learning about life and needs guidance as he develops his abilities. This

1254-638: A virtual reality environment as if he was filming with physical cameras. For The Lion King , the results of the virtual photography were then rendered by MPC as the final animation for the film. On The Mandalorian , Favreau wanted to use virtual technology to aid live-action photography and also develop the video wall system. ILM partnered with video game developer Epic Games to create a new system named StageCraft based on Epic's game engine Unreal Engine . StageCraft consists of large LED video screens on which digital environments can be rendered in real-time for actors to perform in front of. During pre-production,

1463-659: A "climactic story event". Before Lucasfilm announced that Carano was no longer employed by the company in February 2021, The Hollywood Reporter had reported that there was potential for her to star in Rangers of the New Republic . Active development on the series had not begun by that May, and it was still on hold in November when Kennedy said the development had not reached a point where scripts were written. She said there

1672-403: A 21-foot-tall (6.4 m) set that was 75 feet (23 m) in diameter, surrounded by a 360-degree semicircular LED video wall and ceiling. The Manhattan Beach Studios set is referred to as a "volume", which is traditionally the name for motion capture stages. Favreau's initial intention was to use the video wall as a way to provide realistic interactive lighting for the actors, with a section of

1881-445: A CGI version of Grogu in its place. Herzog passionately urged him not to do so and to remain committed to the animatronics and puppetry, saying: "You are cowards. Leave it. Leave it." Esposito has also said having an actual Grogu puppet to perform against has been beneficial for the cast, because "that space allows all of us to be so wowed by its presence". Misty Rosas, who delivered the motion capture performance for Kuiil, often held

2090-606: A bit too withholding— The Mandalorian is a welcome addition to the Star Wars universe that benefits greatly from the cuteness of its cargo." Metacritic , which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 70 out of 100 for the season, based on reviews from 29 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". For the second season, Rotten Tomatoes reported a 93% approval rating with an average score of 8.5/10, based on 451 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "With fan favorites and fresh faces galore both in front of and behind

2299-479: A bounty hunter guild; Werner Herzog as " the Client ", an enigmatic man; Omid Abtahi as Dr. Penn Pershing , a scientist working for the Client; Nick Nolte as the voice of Kuiil , an Ugnaught moisture farmer who helps the Mandalorian; Taika Waititi as the voice of IG-11 , a bounty hunter droid ; Gina Carano as Cara Dune , a former Rebel shock trooper turned mercenary; Giancarlo Esposito as Moff Gideon ,

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2508-401: A bounty hunter to a nurse droid and protector. Even after IG-11 is reprogrammed, the Mandalorian does not believe he has truly changed, because he believes droids have an essential nature and that IG-11's nature remains murderous and untrustworthy. But in reprogramming IG-11, Kuiil nurtures him and helps him to change; Kuiil feels that in the process of learning how to function again, IG-11 gained

2717-401: A bounty hunter to accept his responsibility as the Child's caretaker and guardian, marking a significant parental sacrifice. When the Mandalorian seeks work to earn money, he is now doing so to provide not only for himself, but for the Child as well. We see several examples of the Mandalorian parenting the Child throughout the series, such as when he stops the Child from pressing random buttons in

2926-426: A change of heart and informs the others about the trap. They devise a new plan in which Kuiil will bring Grogu back to the Mandalorian's ship, while the others will kill the Client and his troops. The plan goes wrong and Kuiil is killed by Imperial Scout Troopers , who briefly abduct Grogu before he is rescued by IG-11 at the start of the first-season finale, " Chapter 8: Redemption ". IG-11 brings Grogu back to

3135-466: A combination of adult and infant vocals, as well as recordings of a bat-eared fox and kinkajou . The dynamic between the Mandalorian and Grogu embodies a theme of parenting and fatherhood prevalent in The Mandalorian , with the character also raising questions about good and evil and nature versus nurture in the series. Grogu has received a positive reception from fans and reviewers,

3344-607: A complete end-to-end solution, and that December, it was announced that three additional StageCraft volumes–in Los Angeles, London, and Australia–were being built. In November 2019, Walt Disney Studios CCO Alan Horn said if the series was successful, a film featuring the Mandalorian could be developed. The next month, Favreau said there was an opportunity to explore the series' characters in other Star Wars films or television series. Bob Iger said in February 2020 that spin-offs of The Mandalorian were being considered, and there

3553-586: A considerable ability to use and manipulate the Force, such as when he lifts the large Mudhorn creature into the air in "Chapter 2: The Child", and when he deflects the fire of an attacking stormtrooper's flamethrower back against him in "Chapter 8: Redemption". Kevin Melrose of Comic Book Resources noted that in the original Star Wars trilogy film The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Luke Skywalker struggled to lift an X-wing fighter due to its large size, so

3762-406: A contact, "Frog Lady" (Misty Rosas, voiced by Dee Bradley Baker ), and her eggs in exchange for a lead on other Mandalorians. During their journey, Grogu takes a liking to the eggs and eats a few of them despite being explicitly forbidden from doing so by the Mandalorian. Grogu's appetite also gets the group into trouble while stranded on Maldo Kreis, where he eats a spider-like creature's egg just as

3971-1002: A couple parsecs as The Mandalorian becomes more and more about the connective tissue of broader Star Wars lore, but this remains one of the most engaging adventures in a galaxy far, far away." Metacritic has assigned a score of 70 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". The Mandalorian has been nominated for six Primetime Emmy Awards and forty-two Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards (winning fifteen Creative Arts Emmys), as well as one British Academy Television Award , one Critics' Choice Television Award , one Directors Guild of America Award , one Golden Globe Award , seven Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards and four Hollywood Critics Association Creative Arts TV Awards (winning one), three Hugo Awards , three MTV Movie & TV Awards , one Producers Guild of America Award , two TCA Awards , nineteen Visual Effects Society Awards (winning five), and one Writers Guild of America Award , among others. The Mandalorian

4180-589: A crew of Quarrens who wish to kill Grogu and steal the Mandalorian's armor. While the Mandalorian accompanies Bo-Katan's team on a mission in exchange for a lead on Jedi, Grogu is left with the Frog Man and Frog Lady, during which time the eggs hatch and Grogu bonds with the newborn tadpoles . In " Chapter 12: The Siege ", the Mandalorian and Grogu return to Nevarro for repairs to the Razor Crest , and reunite with Greef Karga and Cara Dune, who have since turned

4389-500: A deal with the former to protect Grogu in exchange for Fett's armor (which the Mandalorian obtained from Cobb Vanth). Despite their best efforts, Grogu is captured by Gideon's Dark Troopers and taken to his Imperial cruiser, where he is imprisoned inside a holding cell. Later, Gideon witnesses Grogu using his Force powers on two stormtroopers to hurl them around the cell before collapsing in exhaustion. Gideon orders his troops to stun and cuff Grogu, and to take him to Dr. Pershing to complete

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4598-552: A final attack from Moff Gideon, the Mandalorian once again departs from Nevarro with Grogu. Grogu accompanies the Mandalorian during his search for other Mandalorians who could help him find the child's people: the Jedi . In " Chapter 9: The Marshal ", the pair return to Tatooine and meet Cobb Vanth ( Timothy Olyphant ), the Marshal of Mos Pelgo, who is not a true Mandalorian but wears Mandalorian armor. The Mandalorian helps Vanth slay

4807-549: A former Imperial officer; and Emily Swallow as " the Armorer ", a Mandalorian who forges armor and equipment from beskar steel. Esposito, Carano, Weathers, and Abtahi returned for the second season. Several actors appear as characters from previous Star Wars media, including Timothy Olyphant as Cobb Vanth , Temuera Morrison as Boba Fett , Katee Sackhoff as Bo-Katan Kryze , Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano , and Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker . Other recurring co-stars for

5016-496: A fresh world. Galaxy Science Fiction ran an advertisement on its back cover, "You'll never see it in Galaxy ", which gave the beginnings of make-believe parallel Western and science-fiction stories featuring a character named Bat Durston. The genre of space Westerns has been informally—and often derisively—known as "Bat Durston" stories since. Such scathing attacks on the subgenre, along with further attacks on space operas, caused

5225-441: A gift to deliver to Grogu: beskar chain mail forged by the Armorer . Ahsoka gives the chain mail to Luke, who confesses that he is unsure whether Grogu is fully committed to the Jedi path and that he does not know how to handle the matter. Following Ahsoka's advice to listen to his instincts, Luke decides to let Grogu choose his destiny by asking him to choose between the chain mail and the lightsaber of his old master, Yoda . In

5434-411: A good story, most of the time they go with it. The character of Grogu was further developed in early conversations between Favreau and Filoni, the latter of whom drew a rough sketch of the character on cocktail napkins during the talks. Multiple artists worked to refine the image of Grogu created by Filoni, but the definitive imagery came from a concept drawing by artist Christian Alzmann, which depicted

5643-468: A green screen. After learning lessons about the technology during the production of the first season of The Mandalorian , ILM was able to make several advancements beginning with the second season. This included transitioning StageCraft to a fully in-house product utilizing ILM's game engine, Helios, rather than Epic's Unreal Engine. In February 2020, ILM announced that it was making its StageCraft technology available to all filmmakers and production studios as

5852-595: A highly- pitched version of his voice for some of the more articulated vocalizations. Acord also previously voiced Rotta the Hutt , the young Huttlet son of Jabba the Hutt , in the animated film Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008). In " Chapter 23: The Spies ", Taika Waititi voices IG-12, a pilotable exoskeleton built by the Anzellans (from IG-11 's remains) to be controlled by Grogu, whom Grogu speaks through by clicking buttons to say "yes" and "no". The character

6061-458: A little disturbing." Some reviewers noted, however, that the Child likely mistakenly believed the Mandalorian was in danger and intervened to help. Additionally, in the same episode, the Child uses Force healing to save Greef Karga, a power typically associated with the Light Side. Nevertheless, some writers have suggested viewers had been underestimating the Child's capacity for evil because he

6270-543: A mentor to the adolescent Anakin Skywalker, Princess Leia lamenting over her grown son Kylo Ren , or the absence of Rey 's parents. Several reviewers have compared the dynamic between Grogu and the Mandalorian to Lone Wolf and Cub , a manga about a samurai warrior and his young son. Grogu makes the Mandalorian a softer and more relatable character; he changes in a positive way because of raising Grogu, becoming less selfish and self-absorbed. Several examples of

6479-446: A more appropriate guardian for the Child, as in the second season's fifth episode, "The Jedi", in which he seeks to leave him with Ahsoka Tano . Several writers suggested the fact that the Mandalorian's face is concealed has a tabula rasa effect and his anonymity allows viewers to see and imagine themselves as parents. Britt said this "allow(s) us to dream about what arsenal we might deploy to protect our children". However, Singer said

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6688-463: A new Star Wars series for Disney+ in March 2018. Kennedy added that the series was an opportunity for a diverse group of writers and directors to be hired to create Star Wars stories after the franchise's films had been criticized for being written and directed solely by white men. In May, Favreau stated that he had written scripts for four of the series' eight episodes before being officially hired for

6897-464: A new personality. Kuiil insists to the Mandalorian: "Droids are not good or bad — they are neutral reflections of those who program them." Keith Phipps of Vulture wrote of IG-11 and the nature versus nurture theme: "He's not bad. He's just programmed that way, and with care and change he can do a lot of good in the world." The Kuiil and IG-11 scenes also demonstrate that how the "child" character

7106-465: A perception that all space Westerns were by definition hack writing and not "true" science fiction. Although the underlying themes remained influential, this bias persisted until the 1980s, when the release of the film Outland and children's cartoons such as BraveStarr and The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers re-popularized explicit themes of cowboys in space. BraveStarr chronicles

7315-544: A platoon of Dark Trooper droids until Luke Skywalker ( Mark Hamill ) arrives with R2-D2 and destroys the Dark troopers. When Luke offers to raise and train Grogu, the Mandalorian, realizing that the child's destiny is to become a Jedi, reluctantly allows him to go with Luke. During an emotional farewell, the Mandalorian removes his helmet to let Grogu see his face for the first time and promises to meet him again. Grogu appears in

7524-469: A prospective companion, but IG-11 defaults to his original programming and attempts to kill Grogu before once again being destroyed. In " Chapter 18: The Mines of Mandalore ", Pelli Motto sells R5-D4 to the Mandalorian and the three travel to Mandalore . When the Mandalorian is captured by a cyborg in the mines, Grogu flies with R5 in the N-1 to Kalevala to fetch Bo-Katan to rescue the captured Mandalorian. After

7733-541: A rampage in Mos Espa. Grogu uses the Force to put the rancor to sleep, stopping it from causing more damage. Afterward, Grogu and the Mandalorian fly away together from Tatooine, in the Mandalorian's new Naboo N-1 starfighter . Grogu accompanies the Mandalorian on his travels as he attempts to atone for breaking the Creed by removing his helmet. In " Chapter 17: The Apostate ", the Mandalorian has IG-11 partially repaired as

7942-422: A reason to fire her for two months. The February 2021 posts were "the final straw", and the decision to fire the actress was made by Lucasfilm executives rather than Favreau. The Walt Disney Company's then-CEO Bob Chapek said Carano was fired because her posts did not align with the values of Disney, which he said were "universal" and not political. The Hollywood Reporter reported that Carano's role of Cara Dune

8151-445: A remnant of the now-fallen Galactic Empire . The assignment is to track down and capture an unidentified fifty-year-old target. The Mandalorian and a fellow bounty hunter droid , IG-11 ( Taika Waititi ), infiltrate a remote and heavily defended encampment on the planet Arvala-7 and find Grogu. When IG-11 attempts to kill Grogu, the Mandalorian protects him and instead shoots and destroys IG-11. In " Chapter 2: The Child ", Grogu

8360-530: A result of the Mandalorian's actions there. Greef proposes that the Mandalorian help him kill the Client and eliminate the Imperial presence from the planet, and in exchange, he and Grogu will be safe from any further reprisals from the Guild. The proposal is a trap, and Greef plans to ambush and kill the Mandalorian and return Grogu to the Client. Nevertheless, the Mandalorian accepts the offer and returns to

8569-493: A scene on the Mandalorian's spaceship, Grogu observes as the Mandalorian and Cara Dune engage in a friendly arm wrestling match. During the contest, Grogu uses the Force to choke Cara, nearly strangling her to death before the Mandalorian intervenes. Throughout the Star Wars franchise, that ability has been most commonly associated with the dark side of the Force , and particularly with the antagonist character Darth Vader . Sarah Bea Milner of Screen Rant wrote: "The moment

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8778-400: A simple-minded observer to Luke Skywalker before revealing himself to be a Jedi Master. Miller suggested Grogu could be putting on a similar performance. One fan theory suggests Grogu could be related to a prophecy in a past Star Wars work that predicted an evil that could consume the galaxy. The prophecy, described in the novel Star Wars: Master and Apprentice (2019), says: "The danger of

8987-401: A single parent and a working parent since the Mandalorian struggles to continue his day job as a bounty hunter and mercenary while serving as the sole caretaker of the Child. Richard Newby of The Hollywood Reporter described the show as "the adventures of a single dad looking for a job". Several reviewers have compared the dynamic between the Child and the Mandalorian to Lone Wolf and Cub ,

9196-401: A soft, pink nerve." Likewise, Vulture writer Kathryn VanArendonk said the show ignores or does not address many parenting details that make fatherhood difficult, such as what the Child eats, when he goes to sleep, and whether he wears diapers. She wrote: " The Mandalorian is uninterested in diapers, and so Mando gets to be a very particular image of fatherhood: the guy who doesn't have to sweat

9405-496: A subsidiary of Lucasfilm, opened a new division in November 2018 called ILM TV, specifically intended for episodic and streaming television. Based in London with support from ILM's San Francisco, Vancouver, and Singapore locations, one of the first projects for the new division was The Mandalorian . While directing The Jungle Book (2016), Favreau had used large screens on set to create interactive lighting so when live-action footage

9614-504: A team of dangerous mercenaries to use his ship while Grogu is on board, nearly resulting in Grogu's death. An interaction the Mandalorian has with Peli Motto in "Chapter 5: The Gunslinger" is one of the most overt discussions about the challenges of caring for Grogu. When the Mandalorian accidentally wakes Grogu, who had been sleeping in Peli's arms, she chides him: "Do you have any idea how long it took me to get it to sleep?" She also condemns

9823-462: A wide margin". Several writers described Grogu as a pop culture phenomenon, particularly noting the adoration it had received from fans on social media. The Guardian called Baby Yoda "2019's biggest new character", and Bryan Alexander of USA Today wrote: "There's nothing hotter in the universe than Baby Yoda." Some critics noted that fandom for Grogu transcended age and experience, and that few fictional characters unite entire fan bases in

10032-424: A wildlife rescue near San Diego , and used recordings of a bat-eared fox and kinkajou to make the initial version of Grogu's voice. However, Favreau suggested the voice needed to sound more human-like and relatable to audiences, so instead the animal sounds were scaled back and used only for small grunts and cooing noises. Actual infant vocals were used to create the new version of Grogu's voice, and Acord used

10241-475: 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, and is revealed to be named Grogu in " Chapter 13: The Jedi ". The Mandalorian is also portrayed by stunt doubles Brendan Wayne and Lateef Crowder . The first season features several recurring co-stars, including Carl Weathers as Greef Karga , leader of

10450-402: Is "Din". Grogu has appeared in every episode of the first three seasons, except " Chapter 15: The Believer ". He was created by The Mandalorian creator and showrunner Jon Favreau based upon his desire to explore the mystery around Yoda and his species. The character was further developed in early conversations between Favreau and executive producer Dave Filoni , and the character's imagery

10659-557: Is a character from the Star Wars Disney+ original television series The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett . He is a toddler member of the same species as the Star Wars characters Yoda and Yaddle , with whom he shares a strong ability in the Force . In the series, the protagonist known as " the Mandalorian " is hired to track down and capture Grogu for a remnant of the fallen Galactic Empire , but instead, he becomes his adoptive father and protects him from

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10868-411: Is a subgenre of science fiction that uses the themes and tropes of Westerns within science-fiction stories in an outer space setting. Subtle influences may include exploration of new, lawless frontiers , while more overt influences may feature actual cowboys in outer space who use rayguns and ride robotic horses. Although initially popular, a strong backlash against perceived hack writing caused

11077-694: Is an emotional transference happening here. The audience cares more about the unnamed, faceless Mandalorian because he cares so much about Baby Yoda." Rebecca Keegan of The Hollywood Reporter believes Grogu displays a form of wisdom despite his young age, describing him as "a Dalai Lama in toddler form". Jeanne Cavelos , former NASA astrophysicist and author of The Science of Star Wars , also believes Grogu demonstrates intelligence beyond his years, noting his awareness and empathy toward beings even when their faces or bodies are covered completely, as well as his ability to recognize injury in others and attempt to repair it. Despite his youth, Grogu demonstrates

11286-464: Is an example of unexpected fatherhood. The Mandalorian feels a connection and parental bond with Grogu because of his own childhood, when he was orphaned upon the death of his parents and was adopted by the Mandalorian culture as a "foundling". Nevertheless, fatherhood was not a role the Mandalorian was initially seeking, and he makes repeated initial attempts to avoid this responsibility. He first does so in "Chapter 3: The Sin", when he leaves Grogu with

11495-456: Is brought to the actors." The environments were designed by the series' visual art department, led by Lucasfilm's creative director Doug Chiang and production designer Andrew L. Jones. During filming, the digital environments were rendered on a video wall in real-time, allowing the filmmakers and actors to see the environments. ILM used a smaller version of the technology for Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018), but on The Mandalorian they utilized

11704-555: Is captured by a large winged Raptor. While the Mandalorian, Bo-Katan, and Ragnar's father Paz (Jon Favreau) leave to rescue him, Grogu joins the Armorer at the Forge, where she teaches him Mandalorian culture and forges him a beskar rondel . The Forge triggers more of Grogu's memories of the Great Jedi Purge, revealing that he escaped Coruscant with the help of Jedi Master Kelleran Beq ( Ahmed Best ) and sympathetic members of

11913-415: Is controlled by two technicians, one who operates the eyes and mouth and another who controls other facial expressions. There are several stand-in versions for Grogu used in filming in addition to the primary puppet. The crew of The Mandalorian wanted to use animatronics for Grogu as often as possible. However, they also shot versions of the character's scenes both with and without the puppet, so they had

12122-418: Is formally declared to be his father figure. Anthony Breznican of Vanity Fair has noted that none of the day-to-day difficulties of parenthood are portrayed in the series: "There is no shrill squawking from Baby Yoda, no tantrum, no spit-up, no uncontrollable shrieking that burrows into a parent’s psyche like a dentist’s drill shredding a soft, pink nerve." Likewise, Vulture writer Kathryn VanArendonk said

12331-458: Is genuinely shocking — and more than a little disturbing." Some reviewers noted, however, that Grogu likely mistakenly believed the Mandalorian was in danger and intervened to help. Additionally, in the same episode, Grogu uses the Force to heal and save Greef Karga, a power typically associated with the Light Side. Peter Foy of Comic Book Resources wrote: "It doesn't exactly seem realistic that Disney would blow its merchandising potential with

12540-405: Is learning to become violent himself as a result. Phipps wrote of this: "That look of wonder in the Child's eyes as IG-11 kills and kills again is hilarious, but also a little chilling." One particular scene in "Chapter 7: The Reckoning" led many reviewers and fans to question whether the Child may be demonstrating evil tendencies. During a scene on the Mandalorian's spaceship, the Child observes as

12749-455: Is mostly a work of animatronics and puppetry , although accentuated with computer-generated imagery (CGI). Legacy Effects , the special effects studio started by protégés of special make-up effects creator Stan Winston , designed the Grogu puppet and supplied the puppeteers to animate it during filming. The puppet cost about $ 5 million to make, and is relatively heavy due to the amount of wires and animatronic technology inside it. It

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12958-435: Is one of the most overt discussions about the challenges of caring for the Child. When the Mandalorian accidentally wakes the child, who had been sleeping in Peli's arms, she chides him: "Do you have any idea how long it took me to get it to sleep?" She also condemns the Mandalorian for leaving the child alone on the ship, saying: "you have an awful lot to learn about raising a young one". ScreenCrush writer Matt Singer argued

13167-461: Is present when the Mandalorian is attacked by a giant rhinoceros -like creature called a mudhorn. As the beast rushes toward the Mandalorian for the kill, Grogu uses the Force to levitate the mudhorn, allowing a surprised Mandalorian to kill it. The Mandalorian delivers Grogu to the Client on the planet Nevarro and collects his bounty in " Chapter 3: The Sin ", after which the Client orders his colleague, Dr. Pershing ( Omid Abtahi ), to "extract

13376-483: Is raised makes a significant difference in whether the child becomes an asset or a threat to those around him. The droid was a dangerous assassin before Kuiil reprogrammed him, but thanks to the Ugnaught's parenting, he becomes a protector and helper instead. Some writers have likewise suggested the Child is not inherently good or evil, but that instead, like all children, he is impressionable and does not fully understand

13585-495: Is scheduled for release in May 2026. A fourth season of the series had been in development, but it is unclear if it will proceed following the announcement of the film. Interconnected spin-off series The Book of Boba Fett , Ahsoka , and Skeleton Crew expand on The Mandalorian 's timeframe, with an untitled feature film directed by Filoni set to serve as a conclusion to the interconnected stories. Beginning five years after

13794-471: Is scheduled to be released in 2024. In January 2024, Lucasfilm announced a film, The Mandalorian & Grogu , that would continue the stories established in the series. Favreau was announced to direct, co-write with Filoni, and produce the film with Kennedy and Filoni. Filming began by August 2024, and the film is scheduled to be released on May 22, 2026. Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios and the Anzellan species from

14003-479: Is so adorable. Fans speculated the Child could be presenting a false personality or using the Force to manipulate people into caring about him to help ensure his survival. However, Caitlin Gallagher of Bustle suggested rather than building toward making the Child evil, the show could be suggesting the Mandalorian needs to find a way to raise the Child in a less violent environment. The Mandalorian premiered on

14212-558: Is unusual in Star Wars stories and that past examples of parenting in the franchise have tended to be poor ones, from the murderous Darth Vader , father of Luke Skywalker , to the neglectful Galen Erso , father of Jyn Erso in Rogue One (2016). Britt wrote: "For years the Star Wars franchise avoided depicting a parent-child dynamic. With Mando and Baby Yoda, that's finally changing." The dynamic between Kuiil and IG-11 also reflect

14421-415: Is very interesting and very knowledgeable and very cute. I never use that word, but he is a cute little guy." Werner Herzog particularly enjoyed filming scenes with the animatronic Grogu puppet, which he called "heartbreakingly beautiful". Chow said directing the scene between Herzog and Grogu in "Chapter 3: The Sin" was "one of the weirdest" moments of her career, because he had so much affection for

14630-415: Is why he uses Force powers generally associated with both the light and dark sides of the Force. It will largely fall to the Mandalorian to provide this guidance, as when the Mandalorian stops him from strangling Cara. Grogu has received a positive reception from fans and reviewers, and is widely considered the show's breakout character . Fans immediately adopted the nickname "Baby Yoda" to describe

14839-511: Is widely considered the show's breakout character , and quickly became a popular Internet meme . The Guardian called him "2019's biggest new character", and The Hollywood Reporter has said the character "represents the future of Hollywood". Many writers have described Grogu as a key part in the success of Disney+. Grogu was kept secret and was deliberately withheld from The Mandalorian ' s pre-release marketing and merchandise plans to avoid leaks and spoiling Grogu's reveal before

15048-685: The Star Wars film series took strong cues from Westerns. Boba Fett , Han Solo and the Mos Eisley cantina, in particular, were based on Western themes. George Lucas attributes the character of Boba Fett to the Man with No Name in the DVD commentary on The Empire Strikes Back . Han Solo's original costume and charming rogue gunslinger mannerisms also reflects the Western's influence on Star Wars . These science fiction-films and television series offered

15257-611: The Marvel Cinematic Universe , where smaller stories exist within the larger narrative, as a potential guide for spin-offs. Additionally, both Favreau and Pascal were open to the idea of the Mandalorian appearing in a Star Wars film, but Favreau was in "no rush" to do this. In December 2020, the spin-off series Rangers of the New Republic , Ahsoka , and The Book of Boba Fett were announced, with all three series developed by Favreau and Filoni, set within The Mandalorian ' s timeframe and planned to culminate in

15466-534: The Naboo Armed Forces. In " Chapter 21: The Pirate " and " Chapter 22: Guns for Hire ", Grogu tags along as Bo-Katan and the Mandalorian bring together their respective tribes. In " Chapter 23: The Spies ", Grogu is given IG-12, a human-sized mecha made from the remains of IG-11, which he uses both to walk and to speak, although he can use only the words "Yes" and "No". When a quarrel breaks out between two Mandalorians from different tribes as they cross

15675-536: The Star Wars films. Favreau also acknowledged that much of the technology involved in StageCraft is not proprietary and is readily available to others, it just had not been combined in this way before. Favreau invited other filmmakers and studios to visit the series' set and see how the new technology was being used, noting that Lucas and other filmmakers such as James Cameron had done the same when they had been working on innovative film projects. Favreau added that

15884-506: The expanded universes of Star Wars and Star Trek. They often consider and view an interstellar war and oppression of a galactic empire as a backdrop, with a focus on lone gunslingers in space wielding a raygun with fantastic fictional technologies in a futuristic space-frontier setting. Westerns influenced early science-fiction pulp magazines . Writers would submit stories in both genres, and science-fiction magazines sometimes mimicked Western cover art to showcase parallels. In

16093-416: The first season was released through December 27. A second season was released from October to December 2020, and a third season was released from March to April 2023. The series has received largely positive reviews from critics and several accolades, including Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Award wins for all three seasons. A feature film, The Mandalorian & Grogu , is being directed by Favreau and

16302-624: The title character , with Katee Sackhoff co-starring in the third season. Star Wars creator George Lucas had begun developing a live-action Star Wars television series by 2009, but it was deemed too expensive to produce. He sold Lucasfilm to Disney in October 2012, and work on a new Star Wars series began for Disney+. Favreau signed on as writer and showrunner in March 2018. He executive produces alongside Dave Filoni , Kathleen Kennedy , and Colin Wilson ; Rick Famuyiwa joined them for

16511-505: The 1930s, C. L. Moore created one of the first space Western heroes, Northwest Smith . Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon were also early influences. After superhero comics declined in popularity in 1940s United States, Western comics and horror comics replaced them. When horror comics became untenable with the Comics Code Authority in the mid-1950s, science-fiction themes and space Westerns grew more popular. By

16720-444: The Child because of his childhood, when he was orphaned upon the death of his parents and was adopted by the Mandalorian culture as a "foundling". Nevertheless, fatherhood is not a role the Mandalorian initially seeks, and he makes repeated initial attempts to avoid this responsibility. He first does so in "Chapter 3: The Sin", when he first leaves the Child with the Client. He does so again in "Chapter 4: Sanctuary" when he plans to leave

16929-447: The Child with Omera, a protective mother on the planet Sorgan, who is willing to take the Child into her own family. The Mandalorian does not fully commit to the role of fatherhood until the first-season finale, "Chapter 8: Redemption" when the Child himself is also adopted into the Mandalorian culture as a "foundling" and the Mandalorian is formally declared to be his father figure. He nonetheless continues to search for what he feels may be

17138-409: The Child. As examples, she cited Obi-Wan Kenobi serving as a mentor to the adolescent Anakin Skywalker, Princess Leia lamenting over her grown son Kylo Ren , or the absence of Rey 's parents. Britt argued strong parental examples in Star Wars are important because the franchise is so often associated with the childhoods of its fans. The Mandalorian particularly highlights the challenges of being

17347-406: The Client, and then again in "Chapter 4: Sanctuary", when he plans to leave Grogu with Omera, a protective mother on the planet Sorgan who is willing to take Grogu into her own family. The Mandalorian does not fully commit to the role of fatherhood until the first-season finale, "Chapter 8: Redemption" when Grogu himself is also adopted into the Mandalorian culture as a "foundling" and the Mandalorian

17556-568: The Force . The duo then travel to Mandalore so Djarin can redeem himself for the transgression of removing his helmet. Pedro Pascal stars as Din Djarin / The Mandalorian , the series' title character. Pascal compared Djarin, a lone bounty hunter with advanced combat skills and "questionable moral character", to Clint Eastwood . The character's real name is not given until " Chapter 8: Redemption ", but Pascal accidentally revealed it early in November 2019. His bounty in " Chapter 1: The Mandalorian "

17765-422: The Force in this manner, Grogu is often exhausted and slips into unconsciousness, indicating that he is still developing his power and does not yet have the skills to fully control it. Despite his raw natural ability with the Force, Grogu is untrained and still depends heavily on the Mandalorian and other allies for protection. Grogu has a sweet temperament, and comes across as innocent and kindhearted to most of

17974-402: The Grogu puppet during her scenes in "Chapter 7: The Reckoning". This occasionally proved challenging for Rosas, who also had to manage the weight of the animatronics in her costume and face mask, as well as the weight of the Grogu prop. One full day of filming the episode focused upon Kuiil riding the blurrg creature, a process Rosas described as "intense" due to the amount of time she spent on

18183-602: The Imperials. The character's real name was not revealed until " Chapter 13: The Jedi ", which also explained that Grogu was raised at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant during the Clone Wars . Before this, the character's official name, used in subtitles and captions, was " the Child ". At the end of " Chapter 24: The Return ", he is given the name Din Grogu after being formally adopted by the Mandalorian, whose family name

18392-536: The Internet era. As an example, Glover cited the excitement generated by the sudden releases of surprise albums by singer and songwriter Beyoncé . Favreau felt keeping Grogu a secret until he was revealed would allow fans to connect with the character and "discover the story as it was unfolding". The leadership and marketing team at the Walt Disney Company was supportive of this strategy. Screeners of

18601-580: The Jedi (1983). Favreau believed part of the appeal of Yoda was that George Lucas deliberately kept his origins and details about the species mysterious, and Favreau believed that sense of mystery would extend to Grogu: "I think that's why people are so curious about this little one of the same species." In mid-2017, shortly after Favreau pitched The Mandalorian to Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy , she suggested he meet with Dave Filoni , who had co-created several Star Wars animated series. Filoni said of his meeting with Favreau: When he brought up in

18810-482: The Mandalorian and Cara Dune engage in a friendly arm wrestling match. During the contest, the Child uses the Force to choke Cara, nearly strangling her before the Mandalorian intervened. Throughout the Star Wars franchise, that ability has been most commonly associated with the Dark Side of the Force, particularly Darth Vader. Sarah Bea Milner of Screen Rant wrote: "The moment is genuinely shocking — and more than

19019-487: The Mandalorian and Grogu to the big screen for the very first time." Physically, Grogu closely resembles Yoda, sharing his signature green skin and long, pointed ears. Grogu is small in size, with wide eyes, short hairs , and wrinkled skin. Grogu is capable of sitting up, crawling, walking, and eating. He appears capable of understanding some language spoken around him, but cannot speak except in baby-like babble noises. Anthony Breznican of Vanity Fair stated: "There

19228-405: The Mandalorian brings Grogu to said temple, where he begins meditating and a protective Force field rises around him. Moff Gideon's Imperial remnant, having tracked down the Mandalorian, soon attacks in an attempt to capture Grogu, who continues his meditation while being protected by the Mandalorian and the recently arrived Boba Fett ( Temuera Morrison ) and Fennec Shand ( Ming-Na Wen ), who made

19437-451: The Mandalorian for leaving Grogu alone on the ship, saying: "you have an awful lot to learn about raising a young one". ScreenCrush writer Matt Singer argued the Mandalorian's parenting errors make the show that much more appealing and relatable because making mistakes is a large part of being a parent. One scene in "Chapter 7: The Reckoning" led many fans to reevaluate Grogu and question whether he may demonstrate evil tendencies. During

19646-531: The Mandalorian once was himself. She instructs the Mandalorian to seek out and deliver Grogu to the others of his kind, and that until this occurs, the Mandalorian and Grogu are a "clan of two", and that the Mandalorian will be like a father to him. She declares their signet to be a likeness of a Mudhorn, the creature the Mandalorian and Grogu worked together to kill in "Chapter 2: The Child". The group departs, and IG-11 sacrifices himself to destroy an entire squad of stormtroopers to protect Grogu. After fending off

19855-418: The Mandalorian parenting Grogu appear throughout the series, such as when he stops Grogu from pressing random buttons in the cockpit of the Mandalorian's spaceship, ultimately by holding him in his lap. In another example, the Mandalorian sets up a car seat for Grogu in the cockpit of his ship, so he can be seated safely and comfortably during their travels. The relationship between the Mandalorian and Grogu

20064-456: The Mandalorian's parenting errors makes the show that much more appealing because making mistakes is a large part of being a parent. Eileen Chase of Today echoed this: "He is not an ideal parent, just like the rest of us who have to balance parenting and work." The nature of good and evil and the question of nature versus nurture is raised repeatedly throughout The Mandalorian , perhaps most overtly through Kuiil's reprogramming of IG-11 from

20273-417: The Mandalorian's tribe come out of hiding to defend them, allowing them to escape Nevarro. In " Chapter 4: Sanctuary ", the Mandalorian seeks refuge in the sparsely populated planet Sorgan . He plans to leave Grogu in a village there under the care of a widow named Omera ( Julia Jones ), but after another bounty hunter tracks them down, he realizes the planet is not safe. The Mandalorian and Grogu visit

20482-459: The Mandalorian, Cara, and Greef and helps defend them against an ambush by the Imperial leader Moff Gideon ( Giancarlo Esposito ), who is revealed to have been seeking Grogu all along. He does not reveal why he wants Grogu, but says he "means more to me than you will ever know". After surviving an attack by Gideon's stormtroopers, during which Grogu uses the Force to deflect the fire of an attacking stormtrooper's flamethrower back against him,

20691-399: The Mandalorian, and Bo-Katan from a fiery explosion. Once Mandalore is reclaimed, the Mandalorian adopts Grogu as his son and apprentice, and he is given the name Din Grogu by the Armorer. The pair leave Mandalore so that Din Grogu can complete his apprenticeship. At Disney's first quarter 2024 earnings call, CEO Bob Iger announced that a new Star Wars movie was being developed "that brings

20900-484: The Walt Disney Company in 2012, Favreau began imagining working on a Star Wars project, and was particularly interested in exploring the events after the original Star Wars trilogy. He conceived Grogu based upon a desire to explore the mystery around Yoda and his species, and an interest in presenting a character from Yoda's species at the beginning of his journey, in contrast to Yoda ending his own journey in Return of

21109-525: The adventures of the Space Marshal, as he seeks to uphold law and order in the 23rd century. The opening trailer of The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers shows Texas Rangers –like heroes riding across a prairie landscape on robotic horses. Spaceships and six-guns both feature prominently throughout. In the 1990s, Japanese manga and anime series such as Trigun (1995 debut), Outlaw Star (1996 debut) and Cowboy Bebop (1997 debut) explored

21318-431: The angle it was being looked at just as a real 3D environment would. This effect causes some distortion to the image on the video wall but looks like a real environment when viewed through the camera. The images rendered on the video wall in real-time were often of a high enough quality to be used as final effects when filmed on set. Physical elements were added to the volume to match the digital backgrounds, such as dirt on

21527-415: The back half rendered digitally. The environments could be manipulated in StageCraft on set as required, allowing the filmmakers to request changes to the environment and have them rendered on the video wall on the same day. The production was able to change between environments within half an hour, or even faster if the physical elements within the volume were not visible and did not need to be changed. One of

21736-444: The blood transfusion. In " Chapter 16: The Rescue ", the Mandalorian boards Gideon's ship to rescue Grogu, assisted by Cara, Fett, Fennec, Bo-Katan, and Koska Reeves ( Mercedes Varnado ). While Fett provides cover from Slave I and the others take control of the ship's bridge, the Mandalorian confronts and defeats Gideon. With Gideon captured and Grogu in their custody, the Mandalorian and his allies have their escape route cut off by

21945-438: The camera, The Mandalorian ' s sophomore season solidifies its place as one of Star Wars ' s most engaging and exciting sagas." Metacritic assigned a score of 76 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". For the third season, Rotten Tomatoes has reported an 85% approval rating with an average score of 7.55/10, based on 240 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads: "Mileage may vary by

22154-606: The character had made the Star Wars franchise relevant to an even wider range of audiences. Vulture writer Madison Malone Kircher described Grogu as an example of a character so popular that his fame nearly eclipsed that of his own franchise, comparing him to Baby Groot from the Guardians of the Galaxy films. The Guardian writer Zach Vasquez noted past Star Wars works had featured young characters that have not resonated as strongly as Grogu, so he credited his success with

22363-414: The character should take. Director Deborah Chow said in this way, it was similar to providing direction to a living actor. Favreau encouraged the directors to test and push the boundaries of the Grogu puppet during filming, urging them to experiment and attempt to get the most realistic movements and mannerisms possible from the character. Brendan Wayne, a body double for the Mandalorian character, said

22572-442: The character's designers and special effects. Likewise, Robyn Bahr of The Hollywood Reporter said the positive response to Grogu, along with that of the show The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance , demonstrate that audiences still desire puppetry, animatronics, and practical effects rather than only CGI. Bahr wrote: "If Baby Yoda were entirely 3D animation, he wouldn't have become an icon the minute we laid our eyes on him." Grogu

22781-636: The character's dialogue later. In February 2021, Lucasfilm said Gina Carano , a recurring co-star during the first two seasons, was no longer employed by the company. This came after Carano made a social media post comparing being a Republican in the United States to the treatment of Jewish people during the Holocaust , with Lucasfilm saying the post was "abhorrent and unacceptable". Carano had been repeatedly warned about her social media posts by Lucasfilm executives who reportedly had been looking for

22990-443: The character's makeshift garment. Favreau said of this rendering: "It looked cute, but it also looked a little weird. That's part of Yoda. It can't just be cute. It can't just be a straight-up Disney baby, it has to be a little bit tweaked." The team sought to establish mannerisms and expressions for Grogu that would remind viewers of a pet with whom they might share a connection. These characteristics include Grogu's ears, posture, and

23199-423: The character, a moniker Favreau has embraced as "the easiest, shortest, most hashtagable way to identify that character". However, the nickname is not used internally by the crew of The Mandalorian , and Disney CEO Bob Iger said he "got [his] wrist slapped" by Favreau for calling the character Baby Yoda in e-mail messages. Iger later said the scale of the positive reaction to Grogu was "beyond my expectations by

23408-440: The childrearing theme in The Mandalorian . The two have a relationship similar to that of a father and son, as demonstrated in the scene in which Kuiil teaches IG-11 how to operate and function after the droid is reprogrammed. Vulture writer Kathryn VanArendonk argued that parenting has been the subject of past Star Wars stories, but almost always during later stages of parenthood, rather than an infant in early stages such as

23617-402: The cockpit of the Mandalorian's spaceship, ultimately by holding him in his lap. In another example, the Mandalorian establishes a car seat for the Child in the cockpit of his ship, so he can be seated safely and comfortably during their travels. The relationship between the Mandalorian and the Child is an example of unexpected fatherhood. The Mandalorian feels a connection and parental bond with

23826-409: The companies working on the series' new technologies—including ILM, Epic, and MPC—were being encouraged to share their work and develop the technology further beyond the requirements of the series. Several actors working on the series, including Carl Weathers and Giancarlo Esposito, gave high praise to the technology and the way it allowed them to act within the environment rather than pretend in front of

24035-418: The conclusion to the interconnected stories of The Mandalorian , The Book of Boba Fett , and Ahsoka , among others. Filoni is expected to begin work on the film following the second season of Ahsoka . A documentary series, Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian , features interviews with the cast and crew of The Mandalorian , behind-the-scenes footage, and roundtable conversations hosted by Favreau that explore

24244-465: The cultural zeitgeist . Beyond the show, other writers have described the character as a key component in the success of Disney's rollout of the Disney+ streaming service . Julia Alexander of The Verge wrote: "There's no question that Baby Yoda is driving interest in Disney+". Some critics called Grogu one of the best and most lauded new Star Wars characters in recent memory, while others said

24453-408: The digital environment. Using StageCraft, the reflections in the Mandalorian's armor were already correct on set. It also allowed for the series' cinematographers to light scenes in a way that would match the background, rather than lighting the set and hoping the digital background would match in post-production as they would have to do with the green screen. A technique used by the production to ensure

24662-423: The events occurring around him. He is learning about the world around him and needs guidance as he develops his abilities. It will largely fall to the Mandalorian to provide this guidance, as when the Mandalorian stops him from strangling Cara Dune. However, multiple writers have questioned whether the violent acts the Child has repeatedly witnessed throughout The Mandalorian are hurting his development and that he

24871-545: The events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983) and the fall of the Galactic Empire , The Mandalorian follows Din Djarin , a lone Mandalorian bounty hunter working in the outer reaches of the galaxy. He is hired by Imperial remnant forces to retrieve the child Grogu , but instead goes on the run to protect the infant. While looking to reunite Grogu with his kind, they are pursued by former Imperial commander Moff Gideon , who wants to exploit Grogu's connection to

25080-402: The fact that Grogu can lift heavy objects despite his diminutive size and young age demonstrates the vastness of his Force powers. Grogu also repeatedly shows a desire to use the Force to help those around him, such as when he attempts to heal the Mandalorian's wounds in "Chapter 2: The Child", and when he heals Greef Karga's near-fatal wounds in "Chapter 7: The Reckoning". However, after using

25289-460: The fake creature and the speeds at which it was made to run. The process was made further challenging because she was carrying the heavy animatronic Grogu puppet throughout the scenes, and she occasionally needed breaks between takes. Rosas said: "My legs are not exactly long, so I was squeezing for dear life and holding the baby." Nevertheless, Rosas said she enjoyed working with Grogu character, saying: "He just melts my heart, he's so cute." During

25498-521: The father-son relationship dynamic between the Mandalorian and Grogu. Ryan Britt of Fatherly wrote: "For years the Star Wars franchise avoided depicting a parent-child dynamic. With Mando and Baby Yoda, that’s finally changing." Vulture writer Kathryn VanArendonk argued that parenting has been the subject of past Star Wars stories, but almost always during later stages of parenthood, rather than an infant in early developmental stages such as Grogu. As examples, she cited Obi-Wan Kenobi serving as

25707-540: The featurette "Honoring the Magistrate: A Tribute to Carl Weathers", "Galactic Legacy: The Creatures and Droids of The Mandalorian", and "Forging the Covert: Part Three". According to Nielsen , The Mandalorian ' s first season amassed 5.42 billion minutes of viewing time during its seven-week run, topping at 1.15 billion minutes during the week its finale premiered. It added 800 million more minutes

25916-410: The film, The Mandalorian & Grogu , instead. It was 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. In November 2018, Pedro Pascal was confirmed to be portraying the Mandalorian after being rumored to be cast in the role for some time. Pascal initially thought he

26125-413: The floor to match the dirt displayed on the video wall. Interior spaces were also created, such as an office used by Imperial agents where the walls and ceiling were displayed on the video wall around a physical table. The production had several physical sections of the Razor Crest , the Mandalorian's ship, that could be placed within the volume, such as having the front half of the ship physically built and

26334-535: The genre are new frontiers in the galaxy and trying to "control" the vast expanse of space. The stories focus on the hardship and adventure of the unexplored space frontier. Space Westerns sometimes intertwine with space opera and military science fiction and are generally placed within the Space warfare in science fiction sub-genre thematic. Specifically written space Western fiction, movies and TV series are sometimes based on established space opera franchises with

26543-475: The genre popularized by Star Trek : it used frontier towns, horses, and the styling of classic John Ford Westerns. Worlds that have been terraformed may be depicted as presenting similar challenges as that of a frontier settlement in a classic Western. Six-shooters and horses may be replaced by ray guns and rockets. The idea is that the vast distances of space have formed barriers, forcing people to become independent or even restricted. Popular themes within

26752-563: The genre to become a subtler influence until the 1980s, when it regained popularity. A further critical reappraisal occurred during the 2000s due to critical acclaim for Firefly . The space Western is a science fiction story that contains Western genre elements within an outer space setting. These Western themes can be explicit, such as cowboys in outer space, or they can be a more subtle influence in space opera . The genre can be contrasted with science fiction Western , which generally relies on traditional Western frontier settings. while

26961-499: The genre. Several years later, Firefly won acclaim, further causing a critical reassessment of space Westerns. Games such as StarCraft , The Outer Worlds , and the Borderlands series have also popularized the space Western theme. Films like The Chronicles of Riddick have continued the space Western theme. Grogu Din Grogu ( / ˈ ɡ r oʊ ɡ u / ), colloquially referred to as Baby Yoda ,

27170-404: The group escapes with Grogu through a sewer grate. They seek help from the hidden Mandalorian tribe, but it is revealed the Imperials wiped out the tribe after they revealed themselves in "Chapter 3: The Sin". The tribe's leader, " the Armorer " ( Emily Swallow ), instructs the Mandalorian to watch over and protect Grogu, who she formally adopts into the Mandalorian culture as a "foundling", like

27379-517: The growth of streaming media services, the rise of Internet culture , and technological advances in CGI. Variety writer Caroline Framke said she fell in love with the character even despite acknowledging that he is an "inherently manipulative product of the most powerful media conglomerate". Not all reviews of Grogu were positive. An online report conducting an analysis of which U.S. states responded most positively to Grogu, finding that interest in him

27588-586: The impact of John Williams ' score on the Star Wars films, but also wanted the music of the series to be different from the films. He wanted the series to sound "a little grittier, a little edgier and a little more tech-oriented". Göransson first met with Favreau in November 2018, when Favreau showed the composer concept art for the series and discussed his inspirations for the story and tone, including Western and samurai films. They also discussed how they felt when they first heard Williams' Star Wars music , and Göransson set out to recreate those feelings and "capture

27797-430: The latter was sold by Lucas to ABC's parent company the Walt Disney Company in October 2012. In November 2017, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced that Disney and Lucasfilm were developing a live-action Star Wars television series for the new streaming service Disney+ . While working on The Lion King (2019), a photo-realistic remake of the 1994 animated film , in 2017, director Jon Favreau pitched an idea he had for

28006-411: The lighting from the video wall looked natural was to have the actors in shadow, with light from the environment behind them, often creating silhouettes. Composer Ludwig Göransson was recommended by several of his previous collaborators to Favreau, including directors Ryan Coogler and Anthony and Joe Russo , and musician Donald Glover . Favreau knew that music would be important to the series due to

28215-569: The little cutie by going all Damien ( The Omen ) in his storyline." Nevertheless, some writers have suggested viewers had been underestimating Grogu's capacity for evil because he is cute. Fans speculated Grogu could be presenting a false personality or using the Force to manipulate people into caring about him to help ensure his survival. Esquire writer Matt Miller noted that Yoda lied about his identity during his initial appearance in The Empire Strikes Back , posing as

28424-490: The main instruments which he augmented with synthesizers and other digital manipulation. Walt Disney Records released a soundtrack album for each episode of the first season . Because of the COVID-19 pandemic , orchestra players were recorded remotely or in smaller, distant groups for the second season . Two albums were released for the second season, each covering four episodes of the season. In February 2023, Joseph Shirley

28633-528: The mid-1960s, classic Western films fell out of favor and revisionist Westerns supplanted them. Science-fiction series such as Lost in Space and Star Trek presented a new frontier to be explored. Peter Hyams , director of Outland , said that studio heads in the 1980s were unwilling to finance a Western, so he made a space Western instead. Outland took the plot directly from High Noon (1952) and placed it on Jupiter's moon Io. Space operas such as

28842-406: The mission, but the other mercenaries eventually find him. One of them, a droid named Q9-0 ( Richard Ayoade ), learns of the bounty on Grogu and tries to kill him, but is himself destroyed by the Mandalorian. At the start of the first season's penultimate episode, " Chapter 7: The Reckoning ", the Mandalorian is contacted by Greef Karga, who says the Client has tightened his control over Nevarro as

29051-497: The necessary material" from Grogu. The Mandalorian later has second thoughts and returns to the Imperial compound to rescue Grogu, killing multiple stormtroopers . This violates the code of the Bounty Hunters' Guild, and a group of bounty hunters led by guild leader Greef Karga ( Carl Weathers ) ambush the Mandalorian and attempt to take Grogu back from him. The Mandalorian and Grogu are saved when fellow warriors from

29260-472: The novel by Christopher was delayed from December 2020 to November 2021, before both it and the visual guide by Hidalgo was canceled in March 2021. Hidalgo stated in December 2021 that the publishing program had been put on hold to avoid any potential contradictions or restrictions that may have arisen between the published material and the spin-off series in development. Space Western Space Western

29469-475: The opening scene of "Chapter 8: Redemption", an Imperial Scout Trooper portrayed by comedian Adam Pally punched Grogu. During the first take of filming the scene, Pally punched the animatronic Grogu puppet hard, prompting Favreau to inform the actor that the puppet cost about $ 5 million to make. This made Pally so nervous that he missed Grogu altogether when he tried to punch him in the three subsequent takes. Pally joked about working with Grogu: "I gotta tell you,

29678-613: The option of replacing it with a CGI effect in post-production if the puppet did not look satisfactory. When CGI is used, Favreau said they try to make the character obey the same physical laws that he would if he were a puppet, adding: "I think a lot of times CG makes itself too obvious where you don't create parameters creatively that allow the character to keep the same identity and charm." The voice and sounds of Grogu were created by David Acord and Matthew Wood , sound editors with Skywalker Sound , who had previously worked on various Star Wars projects. Acord recorded animals' noises at

29887-425: The others stumble upon cloning experiments performed by Imperial scientists, involving Grogu's blood, some of which has already been transfused to the clones to supposedly give them Force-sensitivity. In " Chapter 13: The Jedi ", the Mandalorian takes Grogu to former Jedi Ahsoka Tano ( Rosario Dawson ) on Corvus, who communicates with him through the Force, learning his name and that he is a former Jedi youngling who

30096-416: The parent, the child". Grogu encounters a handful of other protector figures throughout the first season, including Omera, IG-11, and Peli Motto. Some observers have criticized the series for the fact that the Mandalorian repeatedly leaves Grogu alone or in the hands of relative strangers, as well as for making decisions that place Grogu in danger. One example is in "Chapter 6: The Prisoner", when he allows

30305-670: The past is not past, but sleeps in an egg. When the egg cracks, it will threaten the galaxy entire." Fans theorized this could refer to Grogu, who sleeps in an egg-like bassinet in The Mandalorian . Others have theorized the reason the Imperial remnant wants Grogu is to turn him over to the dark side of the Force, or for use as a weapon. Moff Gideon in the season finale says, "You may think you have some idea what you’re in possession of, but you do not." Peter Foy of Comic Book Resources suggested this could allude to Grogu's potential to cause mass destruction. Caitlin Gallagher of Bustle suggested rather than building toward Grogu becoming evil,

30514-494: The people he encounters, but is also occasionally capable of violence, such as during a scene in "Chapter 7: The Reckoning" when he uses the Force to choke Cara Dune while she is engaging the Mandalorian in a friendly arm wrestling match and in "Chapter 14: The Tragedy" when Grogu slams two stormtroopers together while imprisoned by Moff Gideon. Grogu was conceived by Jon Favreau , the creator and showrunner of The Mandalorian . Upon learning that Lucasfilm had been sold to

30723-400: The pilot episode were not distributed to reviewers to avoid leaks about Grogu, and the official Lucasfilm and Star Wars social media accounts did not start posting messages about Grogu until about a week after the series debuted, to avoid spoiling the character's debut as much as possible. One of the primary themes of The Mandalorian is parenting and fatherhood , particularly through

30932-498: The planet Tatooine in " Chapter 5: The Gunslinger ", during which the Mandalorian leaves Grogu in the care of a mechanic named Peli Motto ( Amy Sedaris ). Grogu and Peli are briefly abducted by a bounty hunter named Toro Calican ( Jake Cannavale ), whom the Mandalorian kills. In " Chapter 6: The Prisoner ", the Mandalorian participates in a rescue job as part of a team of mercenaries organized by Ranzar Malk ( Mark Boone Junior ). The Mandalorian keeps Grogu hidden on his ship during

31141-405: The planet along with Grogu and his allies Cara Dune ( Gina Carano ), Kuiil ( Nick Nolte ), and the recently-rebuilt IG-11, whom Kuiil has reprogrammed to be a nurse droid and protector for Grogu. During their voyage, the party is attacked by pterodactyl -like creatures and Greef receives what would have been a fatal injury, but Grogu uses the Force to heal him. Greef is so moved that he has

31350-470: The planet around. While the Mandalorian goes with Greef, Cara, and their Mythrol companion ( Horatio Sanz ) to destroy the last Imperial base on Nevarro in exchange for said repairs, Grogu is left at a local school, where he uses the Force to steal some cookies from another child. This episode also provides a clue as to what the Empire's plans with Grogu are; while exploring the Imperial base, the Mandalorian and

31559-456: The primary advantages of using video wall technology was the realistic lighting, with the wall providing ambient light and accurate reflections on the actors. This was especially important for the Mandalorian, who wears reflective armor. Traditionally, on production using a green screen, the visual effects team would have to remove the green reflections from a reflective character or object in post-production, and then add new reflections that matched

31768-417: The production of the series. The first season premiered on Disney+ on May 4, 2020, Star Wars Day . An hour-long special covering the second season was released on December 25, 2020, with a second special episode covering the season two finale released on August 25, 2021. A special covering the third season was released on June 28, 2023. Lucasfilm announced a publishing campaign of tie-in books and comics for

31977-435: The project. On October 3, Favreau announced that the series was titled The Mandalorian and revealed the premise for the show. The following day, Lucasfilm announced that Filoni, Kennedy, and Colin Wilson would executive produce the series alongside Favreau, with Karen Gilchrist acting as co-executive producer. The series premiere was set to be available with the launch of Disney+ in November 2019. Star Pedro Pascal described

32186-471: The puppet and was interacting with it like it was a living being. She said: "I literally think that he had forgotten that it's not a real-live creature and he had fallen in love with it." Herzog strongly urged the Mandalorian filmmakers to use the puppet for the character and not CGI. While filming one scene, Dave Filoni began to remove the puppet to shoot an alternate take, in case they decided to use

32395-402: The puppet looked so realistic that performing against it felt like working with an actual child actor . Rick Famuyiwa , the director of "Chapter 2: The Child", said he was shocked when he learned that the premiere episode of The Mandalorian ended with the introduction of Grogu, because it meant he would be directing the next episode that further expanded upon the character. The Grogu puppet

32604-577: The rescue, Bo-Katan leads Grogu and the Mandalorian to the Living Waters and Grogu witnesses the Mandalorian bathe himself. In " Chapter 19: The Convert ", the trio are attacked by Imperial starfighters in Kalevala, forcing them to flee to the Mandalorian's convert, where Grogu witnesses the Mandalorian's redemption and Bo-Katan's induction. In " Chapter 20: The Foundling ", Grogu trains with fellow foundling Ragnar Vizsla (Wesley Kimmel) until Ragnar

32813-474: The rest of the swarm hatches. They are ultimately saved from the swarm by two X-wing pilots ( Dave Filoni and Paul Sun-Hyung Lee ) from the New Republic . In " Chapter 11: The Heiress ", the group arrives on Trask and after bringing Frog Lady and her remaining eggs to her husband, the Mandalorian and Grogu encounter Bo-Katan Kryze ( Katee Sackhoff ) and two other Mandalorian warriors, who save them from

33022-594: The risk that details about the character could leak before the show aired. Favreau said of this plan: "I think that part of what people really value is to be surprised and delighted, and I think that's becoming all too rare." Favreau has credited Donald Glover as the source of that strategy. While developing The Mandalorian , Favreau was simultaneously directing Glover in the 2019 photorealistic remake of The Lion King (1994). While discussing music and pop culture, Glover told Favreau that people enjoy being surprised, because true surprises had become much less common in

33231-406: The ruined surface of Mandalore , Grogu intervenes to calm tensions and restore the peace. In " Chapter 24: The Return ", Grogu saves the Mandalorian after he is captured and helps him fight his way through Moff Gideon's base on Mandalore. Grogu faces off against three Praetorian Guards, which destroy his IG-12 suit; he uses the Force to defeat the guards and Moff Gideon, and later to shield himself,

33440-408: The same species as the Star Wars character Yoda which became " The Child ". Favreau wanted to explore the "scum and villainy" of the Star Wars universe following the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983). He began spending several hours at the end of each day developing the series while he was directing The Lion King . Lucasfilm announced that Favreau would write and executive produce

33649-494: The screen behind the actors displaying a green screen so a higher quality version of the background could be added in post-production. During filming tests with the technology, the team realized that the Unreal Engine could render visuals fast enough that they could have the background move with the camera. This allowed the system to maintain the appearance of parallax , where the environment would appear differently based on

33858-534: The season include Amy Sedaris as Peli Motto , reprising her role from the first season; Misty Rosas, the on-set performer for Kuiil in the first season, as the Frog Lady; Mercedes Varnado as Koska Reeves ; and Ming-Na Wen as Fennec Shand , also reprising her first season role. Sackhoff returns to star in the third season, while Swallow, Weathers, Sedaris, Abtahi, Varnado, and Esposito returned as co-stars. Wayne and Crowder receive co-star credit beginning with

34067-422: The season was beginning. In September, co-star Giancarlo Esposito said the second season would "start to lay the groundwork for the depth and breadth that's going to come in season 3 and season 4, where you're really gonna start to get answers". Rick Famuyiwa , who directed in the first two seasons, was made an executive producer for the third season. By late May 2022, Favreau was writing a fourth season, noting it

34276-411: The second season, and were joined by Favreau (who was unable to direct during the first season because of his commitment to The Lion King ), Peyton Reed , co-star Carl Weathers , and Robert Rodriguez . Howard, Weathers, and Famuyiwa directed again for the third season, while being joined by Rachel Morrison , Lee Isaac Chung , and Peter Ramsey . Visual effects studio Industrial Light & Magic ,

34485-411: The series as taking the space Western undertones from the Star Wars films "and infusing it with steroids". In July 2019, Favreau confirmed that there would be a second season of the series and that he had begun writing it. Iger announced in February 2020 that the second season would premiere that October. By late April, Favreau had been writing a third season for "a while" and further development on

34694-439: The series for the fact that the Mandalorian repeatedly leaves the Child alone or in the hands of relative strangers, as well as for making decisions that place the Child in danger. One example is in "Chapter 6: The Prisoner", when he allows a team of dangerous mercenaries to use his ship while the Child is on board, nearly resulting in the Child's death. An interaction the Mandalorian has with Peli Motto in "Chapter 5: The Gunslinger"

34903-497: The series in June 2020. The campaign was announced to include The Art of The Mandalorian (Season One) by Phil Szostak, an original adult novel written by Adam Christopher and published by Del Rey Books , a visual guide written by Pablo Hidalgo and published by DK , a junior novelization of the first season written by Joe Schreiber , and comic books inspired by the series to be published by Marvel Comics and IDW . One month later,

35112-482: The series, while Brendan Wayne appears as Lieutenant Lander. A second season was announced to be in development with Filoni in January 2024. A new series, Skeleton Crew , was announced in May 2022 after being developed by Jon Watts and Christopher Ford . Favreau and Filoni were revealed to be serving as executive producers on the series, which is also set in the timeframe of The Mandalorian and Ahsoka . The series

35321-659: The seventh and final episode, titled " Chapter 7: In The Name of Honor ", Grogu lands in Motto's hangar on Tatooine with R2-D2 in Luke's X-wing starfighter , where it is revealed that Grogu chose the beskar chain mail over Yoda's lightsaber. Motto then takes him to Mos Espa, where he reunites with the Mandalorian. He and Motto aid the Mandalorian, Boba Fett, and Fett's forces in defeating the Pyke Syndicate. However, Cad Bane ( Corey Burton ) scares off Fett's rancor , which goes on

35530-482: The show aired. A member of the same species as the Star Wars character Yoda , he is 50 years old during the events of The Mandalorian " Chapter 1: The Mandalorian ", but still appears to be an infant because of the pace at which that species matures. The species has never been given a proper name because Star Wars creator George Lucas wanted Yoda to maintain a sense of mystery. Until Chapter 13 (i.e. episode 5 of season 2) of The Mandalorian , Grogu

35739-431: The show could be suggesting the Mandalorian needs to find a way to raise Grogu in a less violent environment. All season long, Grogu has witnessed those around him committing violent acts. For example, Vulture writer Keith Phipps noticed that when IG-11 kills multiple stormtroopers in front of him, Grogu has a "look of wonder" in his eyes, which Phipps said "is hilarious, but also a little chilling". Some writers applied

35948-551: The show ignores or does not address many parenting details that make fatherhood difficult, such as what Grogu eats, when he goes to sleep, and whether he wears diapers. She wrote: " The Mandalorian is uninterested in diapers, and so Mando gets to be a very particular image of fatherhood: the guy who doesn't have to sweat the small stuff." VanAnderonk described this as a wish fulfillment fantasy for parents or prospective parents: "a vision of parenting stripped so thoroughly of all detail and specificity that all that’s left are archetypes:

36157-484: The show's second season drew 1.04 million households. The Hollywood Reporter reported that The Mandalorian lead Disney+'s live action series with the majority minutes (8.4 billion) came from the eight weeks the second season debuted. For the first season, the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 93% approval rating with an average rating of 8/10 based on 338 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Action-packed and expertly-crafted—if at times

36366-420: The show's setting in space make the challenges of child-rearing seem more exciting and exotic than they might otherwise be. Anthony Breznican of Vanity Fair has noted that none of the day-to-day difficulties of parenthood are portrayed in the series: "There is no shrill squawking from Baby Yoda, no tantrum, no spit-up, no uncontrollable shrieking that burrows into a parent's psyche like a dentist's drill shredding

36575-552: The sixth episode, " Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger ", of the spin-off series The Book of Boba Fett . While training with Luke, he helps Grogu remember some of his past, including his home at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant and the events of the Great Jedi Purge. The Mandalorian comes to visit Grogu, but decides against it after speaking with Ahsoka Tano, not wanting to hinder his training; however, he gives Ahsoka

36784-409: The small stuff." VanAnderonk described this as a wish fulfillment fantasy for parents or prospective parents: "a vision of parenting stripped so thoroughly of all detail and specificity that all that's left are archetypes: the parent, the child". The Child encounters a handful of other protector figures throughout the first season, including Omera, IG-11, and Peli Motto. Some observers have criticized

36993-449: The soul of what Star Wars is" but in a new way. Göransson was announced as the composer for the series in December 2018. The basis of the main theme was created from Göransson experimenting with a bass recorder, digitally manipulating it to make it more "futuristic". Guitars, a piano, drums, and synthesizers are also featured in the main theme. A 70-piece orchestra was used for the first season, combined with recordings of Göransson playing

37202-412: The space Western, having its roots in science fiction, contains plots, tropes, or archetypes of the Western genre, but is generally set in outer space in a futuristic setting. Gene Roddenberry described Star Trek: The Original Series as a space Western (or, more poetically, as " Wagon Train to the stars"). Firefly and its cinematic follow-up Serenity literalized the Western aspects of

37411-551: The spin-off series, which created interconnected stories and characters within a "very rich fabric for us to explore". A spin-off miniseries focused on Boba Fett was reported in November 2020. It was officially announced as The Book of Boba Fett a month later and was already in production by that point. Favreau, Filoni, and Robert Rodriguez executive produced, with Morrison and Wen reprising their respective roles as Fett and Fennec Shand. Pascal, Swallow, Sedaris, Olyphant, Dawson, and Hamill also reprise their roles, along with Favreau as

37620-593: The spin-offs in August 2022, explaining that The Mandalorian , The Book of Boba Fett , Ahsoka , and Skeleton Crew were all set in the same timeframe—during the 30 years between Return of the Jedi and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)—which had "a lot of room for us to tell stories, and there are a lot of characters that are in play because we know who's around at that time". He noted that they were using The Mandalorian to remind fans of these characters or introduce them to unfamiliar audiences before they appeared in

37829-697: The streaming service Disney+ on its United States launch day, November 12, 2019. The second season premiered on October 30, 2020. The third season premiered on March 1, 2023. " Chapter 1: The Mandalorian " aired on Disney's linear networks ABC , Freeform , and FX on February 24, 2023, in anticipation of the season three premiere on the service. The first two seasons of The Mandalorian were released on Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on December 12, 2023, with Steelbook packaging, concept art cards, and "never-before-seen" bonus features. The third season will be released on Ultra HD Blu-ray on December 3, 2024. Bonus features include

38038-482: The themes and morals that Westerns previously did. This frontier view of the future is only one of many ways to look at space exploration, and not one embraced by all science-fiction writers. The Turkey City Lexicon, a document produced by the Turkey City science-fiction writers' workshop , condemns the space Western as the "most pernicious" form of a pre-established background that avoids the necessity of creating

38247-454: The third season appear along with a new version of the Razor Crest , the Mandalorian's ship which was destroyed in the second season. In December 2020, it was revealed that The Mandalorian and its related series were planned to culminate in a "climactic story event". At Star Wars Celebration London in April 2023, it was announced that Filoni was directing a feature film that would serve as

38456-423: The third season. Star Wars creator George Lucas began development on a live-action Star Wars television series known as Underworld in early 2009. More than 50 scripts were written for the series by 2012, but they were deemed too expensive to produce. In January 2013, ABC president Paul Lee said his network would be discussing potential live-action Star Wars television series with Lucasfilm after

38665-567: The third season. The title was announced in October 2018 when filming started at Manhattan Beach Studios in California. Visual effects company Industrial Light & Magic developed the StageCraft technology for the series, displaying digital backgrounds on a 360-degree video wall . This has since been adopted by other film and television productions. The Mandalorian premiered with the launch of Disney+ on November 12, 2019. The rest of

38874-452: The truth is that Baby Yoda is a bit of a diva. He's constantly vaping ." At some point during filming of The Mandalorian , George Lucas visited the set and held the Grogu puppet. Favreau posted a picture of Lucas holding Grogu on Instagram on January 16, 2020, which drew considerable Internet attention. Grogu was kept secret and was deliberately withheld from The Mandalorian 's prerelease marketing and merchandise plans due to

39083-485: The very beginning of doing this child and having it be of Yoda's species, I was like, ‘Oh, that's very tricky, because there's never been this before outside of Yoda, and then Yaddle in the prequels on the Jedi Council. It's kind of a sacred thing ... We just have to be responsible when we're telling a story with what we're deciding to do. The fans want to know things are a calculated, careful decision. Then if you tell

39292-461: The virtual photography process developed for The Lion King was used to plan the series' filming and determine what environments would be needed on set. The digital environments were then created by ILM and added to StageCraft ready for live-action photography with the actors. Some of these environments were based on location photography in countries such as Iceland and Chile , on which Favreau said, "The actors aren't brought on location. The location

39501-521: The voice of Paz Vizsla , Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Carson Teva, and W. Earl Brown as the Weequay bartender. Grogu also appears. The seven-episode series was released from December 2021 to February 2022. A limited series titled Ahsoka , featuring Dawson reprising her role as Ahsoka Tano, was revealed in December 2020 with Filoni writing and executive producing alongside Favreau. The series premiered on August 22, 2023. Lee reprises his role as Carson Teva in

39710-543: The way Grogu had; Anthony Breznican of Vanity Fair wrote: "In an era of bitter division on nearly all matters, there is seemingly unanimous adoration for this tiny alien creature." Vox writer Allegra Frank said Grogu made The Mandalorian "instantly more memorable and evocative", and alleviated the solitude and tension that might otherwise have surrounded the show's protagonist. Carolyn Giardina of The Hollywood Reporter said Grogu helped The Mandalorian not only achieve critical and commercial success, but also impact

39919-429: The way he cocks his head. Disney CEO Bob Iger said of Grogu: "The moment I laid eyes on the character, I had a strong feeling that it was going to connect with audiences. So cute, so interesting, so compelling. So familiar and yet so new." Favreau has clarified that Grogu is not a younger version of Yoda himself, but has declined to comment upon whether he is related to Yoda or otherwise connected to him. Grogu

40128-504: The week after its finale. According to Nielsen , the second season became the most watched streaming television series in the U.S. from December 14 to December 20, with 1.336 billion minutes of viewing time. It also ranked at the fourteenth place on Nielsen's list of most watched streaming television shows and movies of 2020 with 14.5 billion minutes watched during the year. The show became the first non- Netflix show that landed at number one on Nielsen's streaming ranker. According to Samba TV,

40337-490: Was being cast as the Star Wars character Boba Fett because of the visual similarities between that character and the Mandalorian, but the latter is a separate character named Din Djarin. Favreau called Pascal "a classic movie star" who "had the presence and skill[s]" necessary to portray a character largely concealed under a helmet. The Mandalorian is also portrayed by stunt doubles Brendan Wayne, Lateef Crowder , and Barry Lowin. Pascal worked with Favreau and Filoni to record

40546-484: Was being informed by the series Ahsoka (2023) and Skeleton Crew (2024). Writing for the fourth season was completed by February 2023, with pre-production occurring by that April. Filming was expected to begin in September 2023. However, this was delayed by the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike and the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike . Lucasfilm then re-evaluated their plans for the franchise and decided to prioritize

40755-406: Was combined with a digital environment in post-production the effect would be more realistic. He found the process to be effective, but time-consuming. When he began working on The Lion King , Favreau worked with visual effects vendor Moving Picture Company , technology developer Magnopus, and the game engine software Unity to develop a new virtual camera system that allowed him to film scenes in

40964-487: Was defined by concept artist Christian Alzmann. Grogu is mostly a work of animatronics and puppetry , although accentuated with computer-generated imagery . The puppet was designed by Legacy Effects . Actor Adam Pally has stated that showrunner Jon Favreau told him it cost about $ 5 million to make. It is controlled by two technicians, one who operates the eyes and mouth and another who controls other facial expressions. The character's voice and sounds were created using

41173-415: Was featured on the cover of the December 2019 issue of The Hollywood Reporter , along with the headline: "Baby Yoda represents the future of Hollywood". In an article in the magazine, writer Rebecca Keegan argued Grogu is the culmination of several shifts and trends in the entertainment industry over the decade prior to the release of The Mandalorian . These include the decline of the traditional movie star,

41382-750: Was highest in Utah , and lowest in Mississippi . Rolling Stone writer Alan Sepinwall said the reveal of Grogu was a rehash of the appearance of Rotta the Hutt in Star Wars: The Clone Wars . Emily VanDerWerff of Vox described the character as "yet another merchandising opportunity" and did not feel the character was worth Disney attempting to keep secret before his reveal. BBC writer Caryn James said he did not believe anyone without an emotional attachment to Star Wars would care about Grogu. Jeremy Gordon of The Outline called Grogu

41591-441: Was not expected to be recast, though industry insiders felt that was still a possibility because of story and merchandising reasons. The series is filmed at Manhattan Beach Studios in California. Filoni directed the series' first episode, making his live-action directorial debut, with Rick Famuyiwa, Deborah Chow , Bryce Dallas Howard , and Taika Waititi also directing for the first season. Filoni, Howard, and Famuyiwa returned for

41800-417: Was not identified by a proper name, being referred to by sympathetic characters as "the child", "the kid", or "the baby", and by the antagonists as "the asset", "the bounty", "the target", or "the donor". Grogu first appears in the series debut, " Chapter 1: The Mandalorian ", when the Mandalorian accepts a valuable commission from a mysterious man known only as " The Client " ( Werner Herzog ), who works for

42009-506: Was popular on set with the show's cast and crew. Chow said: "With the baby, every time it came on set, the whole crew would respond to it. Even the grip department, every production assistant is coming to the monitors, trying to see it." Howard screamed in excitement when she first saw it, and Gina Carano said of Grogu: "That was our precious. Our precious is this being that we all end up taking care of in some way." Emily Swallow said she "fell in love with it like everybody else", adding: "I

42218-402: Was potential for ideas from the series to be incorporated into The Mandalorian 's "next iteration". A new series, Skeleton Crew , was announced in May 2022 after being developed by Jon Watts and Christopher Ford . Favreau and Filoni were revealed to be serving as executive producers on the series, which is also set in the timeframe of The Mandalorian and Ahsoka . Favreau discussed

42427-423: Was potential to add more characters to the series to then give them their series. Favreau said in October that as more characters are introduced in the series, "we are beginning to explore where we could go". He felt Lucasfilm could be "more responsive" to audience reactions in determining potential spin-offs due to the faster production time for television series than films. Favreau looked to his experience working in

42636-424: Was referred to as "the Child" in screenplays for The Mandalorian , though Bryce Dallas Howard , who directed "Chapter 4: Sanctuary", said she always referred to him on set simply as "Baby", and other cast members called it "The Being". During filming, the director of each episode would communicate with Grogu's puppeteers to discuss what was happening in the scene, what emotions Grogu should express, and what actions

42845-497: Was rescued from the Jedi Temple on Coruscant during the Great Jedi Purge and hidden for his safety, which is why he suppresses his Force powers. While Ahsoka is reluctant to train Grogu because of his strong attachment to the Mandalorian, she tells the latter to take him to the Jedi Temple on Tython, where Grogu might reach out to another Jedi through the Force and choose his own destiny. In " Chapter 14: The Tragedy ",

43054-405: Was revealed to be scoring the third season. Shirley previously provided additional music for the first two seasons and used Göransson's themes to compose the score for The Book of Boba Fett . One of the primary themes of The Mandalorian is parenting and fatherhood, particularly through the father–son relationship dynamic between Din Djarin and the Child. Ryan Britt of Fatherly wrote that this

43263-513: Was the first production to be filmed using real-time rendering for realistic, parallax environments. Favreau believed that the StageCraft technology developed for the series would have a significant impact on the production of films and television series moving forward. He attributed the breakthroughs made with the technology to the support of Kathleen Kennedy, who was in charge of both Lucasfilm and ILM, as well as to his drive for innovation, and to previous work done by George Lucas on new technology for

43472-598: Was thrilled when they brought him in that little bag for the scene that I got to have with it. I just wanted to snuggle it." Amy Sedaris said the animatronic Grogu puppet made everyone on the set happy: "The minute you looked into Baby Yoda's eyes you just got lost." Likewise, Giancarlo Esposito said he enjoyed interacting with the Grogu puppet during filming: "It melts my heart, because the reality is, this little baby does things that you could never imagine and when you look at those eyes and that little body, how can you not help but fall in love?" Carl Weathers has said of him: "He

43681-463: Was working on Iron Man (2008) and Filoni was working on the first season of The Clone Wars , and Favreau subsequently voiced the Mandalorian character Pre Vizsla in The Clone Wars for Filoni. When Favreau met with Filoni about his series idea, they were able to combine Filoni's knowledge of Mandalorian history with Favreau's lone-gunslinger concept. Filoni also drew a doodle of a baby of

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