‘Star Wars’ Spin-Off ‘The Mandalorian’ Heading To The Big Screen

Another day, another Star Wars movie being announced with little hope of it ever actually making it to cinemas. This time, Lucasfilm have announced a feature adaptation of their Disney+ spin-off The Mandalorian.

Announced this morning (January 10) on the official Star Wars website, the film – plainly titled The Mandalorian & Grogu (the latter being the titular lead character’s sidekick, still often nicknamed ‘Baby Yoda’ by fans) – will enter production sometime later this year. It’s being directed and produced by The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau, with fellow mainstays Dave Filoni and Kathleen Kennedy (who is also Lucasfilm’s president) serving as his co-producers.

“I have loved telling stories set in the rich world that George Lucas created,” Favreau said in a statement shared alongside the news. “The prospect of bringing the Mandalorian and his apprentice Grogu to the big screen is extremely exciting.”

Kennedy shared his excitement, adding in a statement of her own: “Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni have ushered into Star Wars two new and beloved characters, and this new story is a perfect fit for the big screen.”

The Mandalorian aired its third season on Disney+ last year, with a fourth in production. It’s also spawned a suite of its own spin-offs, including the one-off miniseries The Book Of Boba Fett, and the ongoing series Ahsoka (the second season of which was also announced today). A third spin-off, Skeleton Crew, is set to premiere on Disney+ in 2024. There was also the Rangers Of The New Republic show announced all the way back in 2020, however that’s long since been abandoned by Lucasfilm.

All of these shows will culminate in a theatrical film unrelated to The Mandalorian & Grogu, which is also being developed by Filoni. Unlike the film announced today, though, Filoni is expected to write and direct that as-yet-untitled film.

Elsewhere in the Star Wars universe, 2024 will bring the premiere of another new Disney+ series, The Acolyte, as well as the second season of the Rogue One spin-off Andor. There are also three more theatrical films on the slate: an untitled New Jedi Order film directed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy – pencilled in for release on May 22, 2026 and said to serve as a proper follow-up to Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker – as well as an untitled New Republic film, and a film currently in development under the working title Dawn Of The Jedi.

It’s worth noting, though, that Lucasfilm has a long, frustrating history of announcing Star Wars projects that never make it off the ground. Several have been properly abandoned, like a film following Jabba The Hutt, a Knights Of The Old Republic adaptation, and films helmed by Kevin Feige and the duo of J.D. Dillard and Matt Owens. Others are languishing in development hell, like Rogue Squadron, Lando, a whole trilogy helmed by Rian Johnson (who previously directed Star Wars: The Last Jedi), and films helmed by James Mangold, Taika Waititi and Shawn Levy.

The last Star Wars film to hit cinemas was The Rise Of Skywalker – the final chapter in the nine-part Skywalker saga – which arrived in December of 2019.