The Mandalorian
| The Mandalorian | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Also known as | Star Wars: The Mandalorian |
| Genre | |
| Created by | Jon Favreau |
| Based on | |
| Showrunner | Jon Favreau |
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Ludwig Göransson |
| Composers |
|
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 24 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Producer | John Bartnicki |
| Production location | Los Angeles, California |
| Cinematography | |
| Editors |
|
| Running time | 33–59 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | Disney+ |
| Release | November 12, 2019 – April 19, 2023 |
| Related | |
The Mandalorian, also known as Star Wars: The Mandalorian,[1] 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 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 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 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 fourth season of the series had been in development, before creative plans changed and development shifted towards a feature film which became The Mandalorian and Grogu; the film acts as a continuation of the series, was directed by Favreau, and was released in May 2026. 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.
Premise
[edit]Beginning five years after the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983) and the fall of the Galactic Empire,[2][3] The Mandalorian follows Din Djarin, a lone Mandalorian bounty hunter working in the outer reaches of the galaxy.[3] He is hired by Imperial remnant forces to retrieve the child Grogu, but instead goes on the run to protect the infant.[4][5] While looking to reunite Grogu with his kind, he is pursued by former Imperial commander Moff Gideon, who wants to exploit Grogu's connection to the Force.[6][5] The duo then travel to Mandalore so Djarin can redeem himself for the transgression of removing his helmet.[7]
Episodes
[edit]| Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | |||
| 1 | 8 | November 12, 2019 | December 27, 2019 | |
| 2 | 8 | October 30, 2020 | December 18, 2020 | |
| 3 | 8 | March 1, 2023 | April 19, 2023 | |
Season 1 (2019)
[edit]| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Chapter 1: The Mandalorian" | Dave Filoni | Jon Favreau | November 12, 2019 |
| 2 | 2 | "Chapter 2: The Child" | Rick Famuyiwa | Jon Favreau | November 15, 2019 |
| 3 | 3 | "Chapter 3: The Sin" | Deborah Chow | Jon Favreau | November 22, 2019 |
| 4 | 4 | "Chapter 4: Sanctuary" | Bryce Dallas Howard | Jon Favreau | November 29, 2019 |
| 5 | 5 | "Chapter 5: The Gunslinger" | Dave Filoni | Dave Filoni | December 6, 2019 |
| 6 | 6 | "Chapter 6: The Prisoner" | Rick Famuyiwa | Story by : Christopher Yost Teleplay by : Christopher Yost and Rick Famuyiwa | December 13, 2019 |
| 7 | 7 | "Chapter 7: The Reckoning" | Deborah Chow | Jon Favreau | December 18, 2019 |
| 8 | 8 | "Chapter 8: Redemption" | Taika Waititi | Jon Favreau | December 27, 2019 |
Season 2 (2020)
[edit]| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 1 | "Chapter 9: The Marshal" | Jon Favreau | Jon Favreau | October 30, 2020 |
| 10 | 2 | "Chapter 10: The Passenger" | Peyton Reed | Jon Favreau | November 6, 2020 |
| 11 | 3 | "Chapter 11: The Heiress" | Bryce Dallas Howard | Jon Favreau | November 13, 2020 |
| 12 | 4 | "Chapter 12: The Siege" | Carl Weathers | Jon Favreau | November 20, 2020 |
| 13 | 5 | "Chapter 13: The Jedi" | Dave Filoni | Dave Filoni | November 27, 2020 |
| 14 | 6 | "Chapter 14: The Tragedy" | Robert Rodriguez | Jon Favreau | December 4, 2020 |
| 15 | 7 | "Chapter 15: The Believer" | Rick Famuyiwa | Rick Famuyiwa | December 11, 2020 |
| 16 | 8 | "Chapter 16: The Rescue" | Peyton Reed | Jon Favreau | December 18, 2020 |
Season 3 (2023)
[edit]| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | 1 | "Chapter 17: The Apostate" | Rick Famuyiwa | Jon Favreau | March 1, 2023 |
| 18 | 2 | "Chapter 18: The Mines of Mandalore" | Rachel Morrison | Jon Favreau | March 8, 2023 |
| 19 | 3 | "Chapter 19: The Convert" | Lee Isaac Chung | Noah Kloor & Jon Favreau | March 15, 2023 |
| 20 | 4 | "Chapter 20: The Foundling" | Carl Weathers | Jon Favreau & Dave Filoni | March 22, 2023 |
| 21 | 5 | "Chapter 21: The Pirate" | Peter Ramsey | Jon Favreau | March 29, 2023 |
| 22 | 6 | "Chapter 22: Guns for Hire" | Bryce Dallas Howard | Jon Favreau | April 5, 2023 |
| 23 | 7 | "Chapter 23: The Spies" | Rick Famuyiwa | Jon Favreau & Dave Filoni | April 12, 2023 |
| 24 | 8 | "Chapter 24: The Return" | Rick Famuyiwa | Jon Favreau | April 19, 2023 |
Cast and characters
[edit]Pedro Pascal stars as Din Djarin / The Mandalorian, the series' title character.[3][8][9] Pascal compared Djarin, a lone bounty hunter with advanced combat skills and "questionable moral character", to Clint Eastwood.[10] The character's real name is not given until "Chapter 8: Redemption", but Pascal accidentally revealed it early in November 2019.[9] His bounty in "Chapter 1: The Mandalorian" 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,[4] and is revealed to be named Grogu in "Chapter 13: The Jedi".[5] The Mandalorian is also portrayed by stunt doubles Brendan Wayne and Lateef Crowder.[11]
The first season features several recurring co-stars, including Carl Weathers as Greef Karga, leader of a bounty hunter guild;[12][10] Werner Herzog as "the Client", an enigmatic man;[12][13] Omid Abtahi as Dr. Penn Pershing, a scientist working for the Client;[12][14][15] Nick Nolte as the voice of Kuiil, an Ugnaught moisture farmer who helps the Mandalorian;[16][17] Taika Waititi as the voice of IG-11, a bounty hunter droid;[18][10] Gina Carano as Cara Dune, a former Rebel shock trooper turned mercenary;[19][10] Giancarlo Esposito as Moff Gideon, a former Imperial officer;[12][20] and Emily Swallow as "the Armorer", a Mandalorian who forges armor and equipment from beskar steel.[12][21]
Esposito, Carano, Weathers, and Abtahi returned for the second season.[6][22] Several actors appear as characters from previous Star Wars media, including Timothy Olyphant as Cobb Vanth,[23][24] Temuera Morrison as Boba Fett,[25][26] Katee Sackhoff as Bo-Katan Kryze,[27][28] Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano,[29][5] and Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker.[30] Other recurring co-stars for the season include Amy Sedaris as Peli Motto, reprising her role from the first season;[24] Misty Rosas, the on-set performer for Kuiil in the first season, as the Frog Lady;[31] Mercedes Varnado as Koska Reeves;[28] and