By George & Josh Bate
Nearly a month after the release of Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, the future of everyone’s favorite father-son duo from a galaxy far, far away remains unclear. With a box office total paling in comparison to other Star Wars movies, Dave Filoni, Jon Favreau, and the creative heads at Lucasfilm are likely talking about how and in what form Din Djarin and Grogu will pop up again.
But one thing is certain – The Mandalorian and Grogu will return. Grogu has become a pop culture phenomenon and has consistently been one of, if not the, most sold Disney merchandise in the past five years. Despite mixed reception to the recent movie, the two characters still have enthusiastic fans all around the world, eager to find out what adventure they go on next.
In this article, we’re going to break down what we see as the four possibilities for the future of The Mandalorian and Grogu.
The Mandalorian Season 4
A logical next step for Din Djarin and Grogu may be to return to Disney+, the streaming platform that the two were introduced on seven years ago.
The Mandalorian remains the most popular show in Disney+ history, and helped launch the streaming service back in 2019. Given the lackluster box office returns for The Mandalorian and Grogu, Disney and Lucasfilm may be willing to bring the two back for another eight-episode series on Disney+.
But there’s a few problems with commissioning a Season 4 of The Mandalorian.
From the outside, a venture into the world of theatrical releases, only to then return to streaming, may be seen as an embarrassment, or at least a public admittance that trying to bring these characters to the big screen was a misstep.
The landscape of streaming has also drastically changed in the years since the last season of The Mandalorian aired. In the early 2020s, Disney and other companies were desperate to fill their fledgling streaming services with premium content. Disney took this trend to heart and commissioned a ton of Star Wars and Marvel shows in quick succession, including shows about less popular characters and stories (e.g., Ironheart, Echo, Wonder Man).
Now, however, the streaming output from Disney+ and other platforms has slowed down considerably. This is reflected in the days separating each of the live-action Star Wars shows on Disney+. On the low end, a mere 91 days separated the finale of Obi-Wan Kenobi and the premiere of Andor Season 1. But at least 598 days will separate the finale of Andor Season 2 to the premiere of Ahsoka Season 2.
Needless to say, it takes a lot more than it once did to green light a big-budget, live-action series.
The Mandalorian and Grogu 2
Seemingly the least likely next step for Din Djarin and Grogu would be a direct sequel to the recently released film.
While Lucasfilm and Disney certainly want to keep Star Wars on the big screen in any way they can, the lackluster box office performance of The Mandalorian and Grogu doesn’t bode well for how a sequel would perform. Obviously, tons of complex factors played into the performance of The Mandalorian and Grogu, including the release of not one but two breakout horror hits in Obsession and Backrooms.
But, in an increasingly risk adverse film industry, The Mandalorian and Grogu 2 seems unlikely, at least for the time being.
MandoVerse Crossover Show
Another possible next step for Mando and Grogu is that they feature in a larger ensemble. Kathleen Kennedy announced a crossover movie set during the time period of The Mandalorian back during Disney Investor Day in 2020. This movie was confirmed once again at Star Wars Celebration Europe 2023, but we’ve heard little of it since.
Rumblings have suggested that the MandoVerse crossover movie, which was purported to feature characters from The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, The Book of Boba Fett, and Skeleton Crew, was going to turn into a television series if The Mandalorian and Grogu underperformed.
Again, however, the same issues with the changing landscape of streaming come up. A MandoVerse crossover show akin to an Avengers movie in the MCU would draw a lot of attention but also cost a lot of money. If Disney is going to fork out all that money to produce and market a limited four episode show, why wouldn’t they put that story on the big screen and likely earn more money?
MandoVerse Crossover Movie
Ultimately, we think a MandoVerse crossover movie is not only the most likely next step for The Mandalorian and Grogu, but it’s the one we’d most like to see.
An Avengers-style team-up project consisting of characters from The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, The Book of Boba Fett, and Skeleton Crew simply feels too ambitious and grand for a streaming service, even one as prominent and well-resourced as Disney+.
It would boggle the mind if a fairly inconsequential mission about Mando and Grogu saving Rotta the Hutt made its way to the big screen but a sprawling team-up movie featuring some of the most beloved characters in pop culture was relegated to streaming.
A MandoVerse crossover movie would almost certainly fare better at the box office than The Mandalorian and Grogu, especially if it is titled Heir to the Empire. Dave Filoni has sprinkled in elements of Timothy Zahn’s acclaimed novel for years now, dating back to Thrawn in Rebels and Morgan Elsbeth’s mention of Thrawn in The Mandalorian Season 2. Many fans have long predicted that Filoni’s crossover movie will be an adaptation of Heir to the Empire, with elements and characters adjusted to fit into canon.
For us, a live-action Heir to the Empire movie on the big screen sells itself and seems like a no-brainer. Disney and Lucasfilm could advertise Din Djarin, Grogu, Ahsoka, Boba Fett, Fennec Shand, Sabine Wren, Ezra Bridger, Zeb, Hera Syndulla, Jod Na Nawood, and even Neel all in a single movie.
When Filoni last officially spoke about the movie, he confirmed that he had mapped out its first act. His responsibilities as co-president of Lucasfilm likely limit the time can allocate to a movie as big as Heir to the Empire, which may mean he needs to pass directing duties off to a Rick Famuyiwa or Bryce Dallas Howard.
But, regardless, financially and narratively, a MandoVerse crossover movie seems like the logical next step for these characters. It seems as if the overarching story during this era in canon is winding down, with no subsequent shows announced following Ahsoka Season 2. This would make a big culmination of all the different stories feel like an event, something The Mandalorian and Grogu didn’t entirely feel like to many.