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In a surprise announcement on Tuesday, Lucasfilm confirmed the rumors that the next chapter of the Emmy-winning Star Wars series The Mandalorian will indeed unfold on the big screen, not Disney+.
The Mandalorian & Grogu will begin production in 2024, directed by Mando creator, writer and executive producer Jon Favreau and produced by the show's executive producer Dave Filoni and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy.
For the uninitiated, Grogu is the canonical name of the character still referred to as Baby Yoda.
In a statement, Favreau enthused, "I have loved telling stories set in the rich world that George Lucas created. The prospect of bringing the Mandalorian and his apprentice Grogu to the big screen is extremely exciting."
There hasn't been a Star Wars movie in theaters since 2019's Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker, which drew to a close the financially successful but divisive sequel trilogy.
Last year, Lucasfilm announced Star Wars projects that were to get the franchise back on the big screen instead of Disney+, which is home to Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, the celebrated and Emmy-nominated Andor and the recently-wrapped Ahsoka.
On tap — as of now — is a film directed by Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny's James Mangold and one from Oscar-winning documentarian Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy starring the sequel trilogy's Daisy Ridley. Also, there's a rumored movie helmed by Ahsoka creator Filoni that will feature characters seen in Ahsoka and the other Disney+ Star Wars shows he helped create.
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