Stars Pedro Pascal, Sigourney Weaver, and more discuss the new Star Wars film, only in theaters May 22, 2026.
In Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, Din Djarin and Grogu will embark on their most thrilling mission yet, an adventure filmed in IMAX and destined for a theater near you.
The Empire has fallen, but Imperial warlords remain scattered across the galaxy. As the fledgling New Republic fights to protect what the Rebellion won, they enlist legendary Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin, played by Pedro Pascal, and his young apprentice, Grogu. “The Mandalorian is teaching Grogu how to survive in a dangerous world,” Director Jon Favreau says. “As a dad, it taps into the sense of the hero as a protector. You’re trying to create a safe world that you’re leaving behind for the next generation.”
“It’s a story about apprenticeship,” adds Lucasfilm President Dave Filoni, who serves as the film’s co-writer and producer. “It’s about one generation teaching the next.”
Pedro Pascal - The Mandalorian
Star Pedro Pascal has been the often-hidden face of the Mandalorian since the series debuted on Disney+ in 2019. He still recalls stepping into the production offices at Manhattan Beach Studios, where he got his first glimpse of the Mandalorian’s beskar armor and his young green charge.
“The walls were completely covered with story illustrations, including a silhouette of a lone hero discovering this tiny, beautiful little creature,” Pascal says. “It was immediately clear to me that this was the next step for Star Wars.” And, Pascal shares now, he was hopeful from the start that his journey would lead to a theatrical release. “The Mandalorian always felt big screen to me,” he says. “I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t been secretly hoping we would make a movie one day. It just made sense.”
In that first season, Din Djarin was introduced as a hardened Mandalorian warrior who followed both the bounty hunter’s code and the Mandalorian creed to the letter. But within the first arc, the Mandalorian let his compassion for Grogu outweigh everything else.
“Their story started with Mando as a very reluctant protector for this mysterious child,” says Pascal. “Through their incredible adventures, they have become deeply bonded to one another. Mando has now placed his focus on protecting his son and preparing him for the future, and in the film, that dynamic has a lot of surprising and emotional shifts.”
Behind the scenes, Din Djarin is a shared performance from Pascal, Brendan Wayne, and Lateef Crowder. “This is such a unique experience because not only does it take an enormous village to create a Star Wars movie … but it also takes a village to play Mando,” Pascal says.
“It’s the combination of them that makes the magic,” says Filoni.
When we left off with Din Djarin, he and Grogu were setting up a homestead on Nevarro, an ashen world that was home to a Mandalorian covert in the early days of the New Republic. This next chapter will take the Clan of Two on a bold new adventure, visiting new worlds never before realized in live action.
“The sets are unbelievable, the most incredible I’ve ever been on,” Pascal says. “They leave so little to the imagination, you’re in a complete world with a stunt team circling you as monsters in the swamp pit…. It makes you feel like a kid again.”
Grogu - Grogu
Speaking of kids, at 50 years old Grogu (affectionately referred to as Baby Yoda when he first arrived in 2019) still looks like a child and is still very much a child. On the press tour for the new film, Director Jon Favreau and stars Pedro Pascal and Sigourney Weaver have gamely treated Grogu as if he’s just another movie star, joking about his punctuality on set and his impeccable timing — he never steps on another actor’s lines mostly because he doesn’t have any.
Although he’s billed as Grogu starring as himself, the wizards of Legacy Effects and a dedicated troop of puppeteers bring the character to life. “We got to work with puppeteers, stop-motion animation, all the things I loved about Star Wars,” Favreau says of the film. “It’s about combining new technology with the old, handcrafted stuff that’s so much of what makes Star Wars, Star Wars.”
With Grogu specifically, the animatronics have consistently evolved over the course of the series, leading to the incredibly detailed and technically advanced puppet seen in the film.“The first thing Jon said to us was that Grogu’s number 2 on the call sheet,” says Legacy Effects performer Jason Matthews. “We have to tell a story, and Grogu doesn’t deliver any dialogue, just sounds. He’s got to tell a great deal through body language, expressions, emotions.”
And in-world,“Grogu has also leveled up a bit,” says Favreau. “We know that previously he trained with Luke Skywalker, so he’s got a little Jedi influence; plus, he’s an apprentice Mandalorian, which makes him very unique. It’s time for Grogu to go out in the field and for Dad to show him the ropes.”
“The team puppeteering Grogu, their hearts are 120 percent into every little detail and every emotive moment of that child,” says Pascal. “They completely get it. They pay attention to absolutely everything that’s happening in a scene, and how Grogu would react to it, which means that they’re paying attention to absolutely everything that you’re doing.”
Like many fans, co-star Weaver felt an immediate connection to the character. “I think Jon knows that everyone wants to get close to Grogu,” Weaver says. “I know there are people on the floor and all around him, but all I see is his little face and his little eyes, and his little noises….I am in love with Grogu.”
Weaver’s adoration led to more screen time for the pair, Favreau notes. “Sigourney got such a kick out of Grogu,” Favreau says. “Sigourney said, ‘I want to work with this guy.’ So, we created some moments that I think work very well.”
Sigourney Weaver - Colonel Ward
A new addition to the cast from the Disney+ series, Sigourney Weaver is a powerhouse performer, known for her iconic character Ellen Ripley from the Alien films and much more.
Co-star Pedro Pascal was a fan long before the two became colleagues. “You don’t know who you’re talking to. I am the number-one Sigourney Weaver fan,” he says. “Better than being in Star Wars for me is being in a movie with Sigourney Weaver. She’s just the biggest badass. She’s transcendent. It just doesn’t get better!”
Weaver’s accolades include winning both a Golden Globe® and a BAFTA, and snagging three Academy Award® nominations for her skill. As Colonel Ward, Weaver gives a commanding performance as a no-nonsense leader who survived the Empire and continues to fight to uphold the values of the New Republic. “She’s an X-wing fighter pilot,” Weaver says. “She’s spent her whole life fighting for the Republic and fighting against the Empire and everything that it represents. She takes her job very seriously.”
But before she was cast, Weaver was already a fan of the franchise, watching along from the very beginning in 1977. “I never expected to be in a Star Wars movie, but I’m delighted,” Weaver says. “The Alien universe is a much darker place than Star Wars, but they’re both about something bigger than the creatures. I just feel very fortunate.”
Together, the Mandalorian and Grogu must help Colonel Ward and the New Republic snuff out the Imperial remnant. “He’s exactly what she wants to efficiently extract people she suspects of continuing to fight for the Empire,” Weaver says.
In joining the established crew, Weaver was enamored with Director Jon Favreau’s leadership on set. “You feel his confidence and his experience,” she says. “He’s a wonderful director. He’s open, he lets you try stuff. He’s a pro who still has all that passion….I was pinching myself that I got to be on set, and I love my character. I love being a part of this family. It feels very special to me.”
Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu
Din Djarin and Grogu embark on their most thrilling mission yet in Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu. Directed by Jon Favreau and filmed for IMAX, Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu stars Pedro Pascal as the Mandalorian, Sigourney Weaver as Colonel Ward, and Jeremy Allen White as Rotta the Hutt. The film is written by Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, and Noah Kloor, and is produced by Kathleen Kennedy, Ian Bryce, Jon Favreau, and Dave Filoni, with Karen Gilchrist, John Bartnicki, and Carrie Beck serving as executive producers and music by Ludwig Göransson.
Watch the latest trailer for the film and get your tickets now for Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian and Grogu, an all-new Star Wars adventure filmed for IMAX and opening exclusively in theaters May 22, 2026.
