What the Mandalorian & Grogu movie reveals about the future of Star Wars

This week’s announcement of The Mandalorian & Grogu film added one more major project to Lucasfilm’s already crowded Star Wars slate. While we don’t have many details about The Mandalorian movie at this point, what we do know shows where the studio is focusing its resources, and where the Star Wars franchise is headed. It’s pretty clear that Lucasfilm is all in on the adventures of an adorable little green puppet and his dad as well as the creators who brought him into the world in the first place. But it’s also interesting to look at what’s been sidelined as a result of fast-tracking this project.

Over the past decade, Lucasfilm has shifted its focus from theatrical films to original TV series. Between 2015 and 2019 the studio produced five films—the trilogy that concluded the Skywalker Saga plus the standalone films Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Solo: A Star Wars Story. That film frenzy slowed to a halt, however, with the launch of Disney+ in 2019 (further complicated by the pandemic and its effect on cinemas). The Mandalorian was one of the first original series to debut on the platform, and was specifically designed to attract new subscribers. Other shows followed, including The Book Of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, and Ahsoka. Still more are on the way—a second season of Ahsoka was announced at the same time as The Mandalorian & Grogu—but it’s starting to look like Disney+ may no longer have a monopoly on new Star Wars content.

By the time The Mandalorian & Grogu premieres it will likely have been at least six years since fans lined up to see a Star Wars film in a theater. We know the project is going into production in 2024, and although we have no official word on a release date there’s every indication it will jump ahead of other projects currently in development.

All in on Favreau and Filoni

This week’s statement announcing the new film included a quote from Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy that seemed to indicate the company is placing all its chips on two particular creators. “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,” Kennedy said, adding that The Mandalorian & Grogu would “lead Lucasfilm’s ongoing feature-development slate, including films helmed by Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, James Mangold, and Dave Filoni.”

Favreau, as you may know, is the creator and executive producer of The Mandalorian. He’s also set to direct the film. Filoni, currently the Chief Creative Officer at Lucasfilm, is on board to executive produce. The two have worked together closely on several Disney+ shows as writers, directors, and producers, so expect the new film to carry on the continuity established in those productions. Filoni’s upcoming feature has been rumored to tie them all together in an epic, Marvel-style team up that could include Mando, Grogu, Ahsoka, Boba Fett, and other characters from the TV realm.

What about all those other projects in development?

At last year’s Star Wars Celebration we learned about three upcoming film projects, none of which were The Mandalorian & Grogu. James Mangold is set to direct a feature about the origins of the Jedi and the Force. Ms. Marvel director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy will bring Daisy Ridley back as Rey in a continuation of the Skywalker Saga with the tentative title Star Wars: The New Jedi order. And Dave Filoni is set to bring the threads of several TV projects together in a feature of his own.

Curiously, though, prior to this week’s announcement, the only Star Wars film officially on Disney’s slate with a name attached was the one director Taika Waititi is supposed to be working on. As of last June, he had still not finished the script, which he is co-writing with Krysty Wilson-Cairns (1917, Last Night In Soho). Although that film is currently scheduled for release on May 22, 2026, it wasn’t mentioned in Lucasfilm’s announcement. Has it been canceled or postponed? We’re still waiting for news on that front.

The studio also previously had an untitled Star Wars film on the calendar for December 2026. That seems to leave 2025 open, so Mando and his foundling may have the year all to themselves.

Disney+ is still key to Lucasfilm’s content strategy

There’s still plenty of Star Wars content to look forward to on TV as well, including a second season of Ahsoka and possibly another season or two of The Mandalorian tied to the feature film. The lead-up to Filoni’s film may also include more of The Book Of Boba Fett, hopefully with some retooling to avoid the pitfalls of the poorly received first season. There are also more episodes of the Filoni-created animated series The Bad Batch on the way.

This year we’re supposed to be getting two new Star Wars shows on Disney+ that are outside of the Favreu-Filoni-verse (although both are on board as executive producers). First up will be Skeleton Crew, from Jon Watts and Christopher Ford (Spider-Man: Homecoming), starring Jude Law as a Jedi. Later in 2024 we’ll be getting The Acolyte from Russian Doll creator Leslye Headland. These seem to be following another trend we’re seeing in Star Wars projects right now, letting different creators with their own voices put their stamp on the franchise. It certainly worked with Andor, which is also due for a second season.