Star Wars movies

The Mandalorian and Grogu Premiere Makes Star Wars Feel Like a Movie Again

The Mandalorian and Grogu IMAX special look event poster for May the 4th

For the last several years, live-action Star Wars has mostly felt like something you watched at home while wondering if you still had time to squeeze in one more episode before bed. Now the red carpet is back. The Mandalorian and Grogu has held its Los Angeles premiere, with Pedro Pascal, Sigourney Weaver, Ming-Na Wen, Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, and more turning up for the kind of glossy Hollywood rollout Star Wars has not had in a very long time. Page Six and Just Jared both covered the L.A. event, which turned the film’s final marketing stretch into something that looked less like another Disney+ chapter and more like a proper theatrical moment. And honestly, that matters. Star Wars Has Been Living on the Couch Since The Rise of Skywalker in 2019, live-action Star Wars has mostly belonged to Disney+. That era gave us plenty: The Mandalorian, Andor, Ahsoka, Obi-Wan…

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Grogu’s Jedi Path Is Getting Weirder, and That’s Good

Small green alien on mossy forest log

Grogu is not becoming a normal Jedi. Thank the Force for that. The little green chaos goblin at the heart of The Mandalorian and Grogu may still meditate, use the Force, and make everyone in a ten-mile radius emotionally vulnerable. But Jon Favreau is making it increasingly clear that Grogu’s future is not simply “tiny Luke Skywalker, but with better ears.” In a new Total Film interview, reported by GamesRadar, Favreau says Grogu is “not on the typical Jedi path of a youngling,” even though he has trained with some remarkable teachers. That includes Luke Skywalker, his time at the Jedi Temple, and possibly Yoda before everything in the galaxy became Order 66-shaped misery. That matters because The Mandalorian and Grogu is not just about a kid with powers anymore. It is about what happens when a Force-sensitive child is raised outside the usual Jedi system — by a Mandalorian…

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The Mandalorian and Grogu Is Trying Not to Be Homework

Grogu riding with small Anzellan characters in a desert vehicle scene, used as the header image for an article about The Mandalorian and Grogu as a more standalone movie.

Star Wars is heading back to theaters, and Jon Favreau seems very aware of one dangerous trap: making the audience feel like they need to revise for an exam first. The Mandalorian and Grogu arrives in cinemas on May 22, 2026, marking the franchise’s first big-screen release since The Rise of Skywalker. But while the movie grew out of plans for The Mandalorian Season 4, Favreau is now framing it as something more self-contained — a film that still fits the wider Mando-era story, but does not require every viewer to arrive carrying a Disney+ viewing spreadsheet. In a new Total Film interview, reported by GamesRadar, Favreau says Dave Filoni remains “closely in step” with the movie, even though the shift from streaming season to theatrical release changed the shape of the story. That distinction matters. A Movie Cannot Feel Like Episode 25 Television can be dense. It can reward…

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The Mandalorian & Grogu Had to Stop Being Season 4

The Mandalorian and Grogu article header image with title text about the Star Wars movie becoming more standalone than Season 4.

Jon Favreau may have just explained the most important creative choice behind The Mandalorian and Grogu. The upcoming Star Wars movie did not simply become “Season 4, but longer.” According to Favreau, the story originally tied more directly into what had come before — and what was still coming next — but the film had to become more self-contained so new viewers could actually walk into a theater without needing a Disney+ homework binder. Speaking with GamesRadar, Favreau said the movie still connects to the larger Mando-era story, but in a way that is more approachable for audiences who may not have followed every thread from The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and Ahsoka. That is not just smart. It is probably necessary. Star Wars Cannot Return to Theaters With Homework The Mandalorian and Grogu is not a normal Star Wars release. It is the franchise’s big theatrical return…

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Starfighter’s New Synopsis Makes the Future of the Force Sound Weirdly Huge

Cinematic Star Wars Starfighter header image featuring a lone pilot beside a modified starfighter under a planet-filled sky.

Star Wars: Starfighter may have just dropped its smallest big clue yet. A new synopsis has appeared on the film’s IMDb listing, and while that does not carry the same weight as an official Lucasfilm press release, the wording is spicy enough to deserve a closer look. According to the listing, the film follows “a solitary pilot” in a rebuilding galaxy who becomes tangled in a crucial mission as new threats emerge — a journey that “may alter the future of the Force itself.” That is either standard movie-synopsis thunder… or Star Wars quietly loading a thermal detonator under the post-sequel era. The Post-Sequel Galaxy Finally Has a Shape Officially, StarWars.com has confirmed that Starfighter is set roughly five years after The Rise of Skywalker, with Ryan Gosling playing a brand-new character in a standalone adventure from director Shawn Levy. That timeline is the interesting part. The sequel trilogy ended…

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Guillermo del Toro Quietly Helped Shape the Hutts in The Mandalorian & Grogu

Editorial header image featuring Guillermo del Toro alongside a Hutt-like alien, illustrating his creative influence on the Hutt material in The Mandalorian & Grogu.

Guillermo del Toro did not direct a Star Wars movie. He did not get to make his long-rumored Jabba the Hutt film. But somehow, beautifully, he still ended up near the Hutts. Jon Favreau has revealed that del Toro receives an acknowledgment credit in The Mandalorian & Grogu after giving creative suggestions about the Hutts featured in the film. In an interview with Vandal, Favreau explained that del Toro had spent a lot of time thinking about Hutts because of his own abandoned Jabba project, and that he shared ideas with the Mandalorian & Grogu team. The Hutt Expert Star Wars Almost Used This is one of those behind-the-scenes details that feels small at first, then immediately gets more interesting the longer you stare at it. Del Toro has history with Hutt material. Back in 2023, The Hollywood Reporter reported that the filmmaker confirmed he had worked on a now-scrapped…

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The Mandalorian & Grogu Finally Lets Pedro Pascal Fight Helmet-Off

Pedro Pascal as Din Djarin with his helmet off in The Mandalorian & Grogu, used for an article about helmet-off action scenes.

Din Djarin taking his helmet off is not exactly a casual Tuesday in The Mandalorian. It usually means vows, trauma, emotional breakthroughs, or Grogu looking at him with those enormous “please ruin the internet” eyes. But in The Mandalorian & Grogu, it sounds like Pedro Pascal is not just getting helmet-off drama. He is getting helmet-off action. During recent press for the movie, Jon Favreau revealed that Pascal filmed “great set-pieces” with his helmet off, adding that the team leaned into Pascal’s physicality for some very specific reasons. As Favreau put it, Pascal was a competitive swimmer, so they got him in the water — and after seeing his combat work in Gladiator II, they also had him fighting without the helmet. Vis dette opslag på Instagram Et opslag delt af Omelete (@omelete) Din Djarin, But More Pedro This Time That is a pretty big shift for a character built…

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Star Wars: Starfighter Finds Its Mandalorian Editor

Split-image header showing Ryan Gosling as the lead in Star Wars: Starfighter alongside editor Adam Gerstel at an editing workstation.

Star Wars: Starfighter has quietly added another important piece behind the scenes — and this one comes with some very familiar Star Wars mileage. According to Adam Gerstel’s résumé at Independent Artist Group, Gerstel is listed as the editor of Star Wars: Starfighter, the upcoming Lucasfilm movie directed by Shawn Levy. Not the loudest piece of casting news in the galaxy, sure. But editing is where a Star Wars movie either flies like an X-wing or crashes into a committee meeting with expensive lighting. A Familiar Name From The Mandalorian Gerstel is not new to Star Wars. As noted by Bespin Bulletin’s report on Gerstel joining Starfighter, he previously edited The Mandalorian Season 2 episodes “Chapter 9: The Marshal” and “Chapter 16: The Rescue.” That is a pretty interesting pair of credits. “The Marshal” helped launch Season 2 with Cobb Vanth, Tusken Raiders, a krayt dragon, and the kind of…

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The Mandalorian & Grogu Is Now Tracking for a Potential $100M Opening

Header image showing Grogu and companions with headline text about The Mandalorian and Grogu tracking for a potential 100 million dollar opening

The box office story around The Mandalorian & Grogu just got a little more interesting. After some earlier softer-looking chatter around the film’s commercial prospects, Boxoffice Pro’s latest long-range forecast now says the movie could open in the $90 million to $100 million range domestically when it hits theaters on May 22, 2026. That would be a meaningful shift in tone around the film’s launch outlook, even if the upper end still would not put it near the biggest modern Star Wars openings. That is the key thing here: this is better, but it is not suddenly a “Star Wars is back to automatic $150M openings” story. Better than the gloomier narrative According to Boxoffice Pro’s long-range forecast, a $100 million opening would still rank as the lowest Star Wars debut since Solo: A Star Wars Story, which opened to $84.4 million in 2018. The same report notes that The…

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Shawn Levy Says Star Wars: Starfighter Is Now in the Edit Room

Header image showing Shawn Levy in a dark film editing room with Star Wars-inspired visuals for an article about Star Wars: Starfighter entering the edit phase

Star Wars: Starfighter has moved into a very important phase of production: the part where the footage stops being potential and starts becoming an actual movie. Speaking to Variety at the Breakthrough Prize Ceremony, director Shawn Levy said he is currently editing the film, describing himself as being in the “beautiful sanctity of the edit room” while shaping the movie ahead of its 2027 release. As Levy put it, “We don’t come out until next year,” adding that he is in the “dark quiet of the edit room finding the best possible shape for the film.” The quote comes from Variety’s recent interview with Levy. That is not exactly a flashy reveal, but it is the kind of update that makes the project feel more real. Earlier official coverage from StarWars.com’s original announcement of Star Wars: Starfighter confirmed that the film stars Ryan Gosling, is directed by Shawn Levy, and…

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The Mandalorian & Grogu May the 4th IMAX Previews Have Already Sold Out

Mandalorian and Grogu IMAX event poster sold out

That did not take long. The special-look IMAX fan events for The Mandalorian & Grogu on May the 4th are now officially sold out, according to Star Wars’ own social posts announcing the sellout. The events were set up as free advance screenings at select IMAX theaters around the world, giving fans an early look at more than 25 minutes of footage from the movie ahead of its full theatrical release. And honestly, that is a pretty strong signal. Fans moved fast on this one Lucasfilm and IMAX only just started pushing the event publicly, with trade coverage confirming that the May 4 screenings would include more than 25 minutes of exclusive footage, special fan giveaways, and a new poster at select locations. Boxoffice Pro reported the event on April 23, framing it as a global May the 4th fan push tied directly to the movie’s theatrical rollout. Now the…

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Lucasfilm and IMAX Are Letting Fans Watch the First 30 Minutes of The Mandalorian & Grogu on May the 4th

The Mandalorian and Grogu IMAX special look event poster for May the 4th

Lucasfilm and IMAX are doing something very smart with The Mandalorian & Grogu: they are letting fans sample the movie early, on the most Star Wars date imaginable. A special May the 4th IMAX event is giving fans the chance to watch the first 30 minutes of The Mandalorian & Grogu at select theaters before the film’s full release. Fandango’s event listing says the screening will preview more than 25 minutes of never-before-seen footage, and the RSVP sign-up is being handled through a theater registration form for local participating locations. That is not a small teaser. This is Lucasfilm effectively treating the opening half-hour like a theatrical sales pitch, which makes a lot of sense for a movie that has been pushed hard as an IMAX event. The official IMAX movie page lists The Mandalorian and Grogu as a Filmed For IMAX release and confirms the full theatrical release date…

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Jon Favreau Used Apple Vision Pro to Build Mandalorian & Grogu for IMAX

Header image showing Mandalorian and Grogu with Apple Vision Pro for a story about Jon Favreau’s IMAX workflow

Jon Favreau has revealed one of the stranger and more interesting bits of tech behind The Mandalorian & Grogu: he used Apple Vision Pro to preview how the movie’s IMAX shots would actually look in a theater-sized frame. In an interview clip highlighted by multiple outlets, Favreau said they built software so he could put on the headset, sit in a virtual IMAX auditorium, and view the full aspect ratio while lining up shots. That is a pretty smart solution to a very real movie problem. Favreau’s explanation was simple: if you are making an IMAX movie, watching footage on a normal monitor is not the same thing as seeing what audiences will actually get on a giant screen. He said the team layered custom software on top of Apple Vision Pro so he could review takes as if he were already in an IMAX theater, then judge framing based…

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Martin Scorsese’s Mandalorian & Grogu Cameo Is Very Real

Header image showing Martin Scorsese and his Mandalorian and Grogu alien cameo side by side

Of all the names you might expect to pop up in a Star Wars movie, Martin Scorsese was probably not near the top of the list. But according to SFX magazine, via comments from director Jon Favreau, the legendary filmmaker really does have a cameo in The Mandalorian & Grogu, where he voices an alien shopkeeper seen in the film’s trailer. And honestly, that is already one of the strangest and best little details attached to this movie so far. Kathleen Kennedy made it happen Favreau says the cameo came together thanks to Kathleen Kennedy, who knew Scorsese personally and was able to reach out directly. According to Favreau, Kennedy “called him up,” Scorsese said yes, and Favreau then got to direct him himself. That alone is a pretty wild sentence in Star Wars terms. It is not every day you get one of cinema’s most famous directors stepping into…

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Spaceballs: The New One Is Real — and Star Wars Fans Should Absolutely Care

Dark Helmet image with Spaceballs The New One title text overlay

The title alone sounds like a joke Mel Brooks would have made in 1987 and then somehow gotten away with twice. But it is real: the long-awaited Spaceballs sequel is officially titled Spaceballs: The New One, and Amazon MGM unveiled that name during its CinemaCon presentation. The film is set for a theatrical release on April 23, 2027, and the reveal also confirmed that Rick Moranis is back as Dark Helmet alongside returning cast members including Bill Pullman. That is already enough to get attention. For Star Wars fans, though, there is a second story here. Salute! Spaceballs: The New One is coming to theaters April 23, 2027. pic.twitter.com/aPgIpJB8JO — Amazon MGM Studios (@AmazonMGMStudio) April 16, 2026 Because Spaceballs is not just some random old parody making a comeback. It is still the most famous Star Wars spoof ever made, the one that turned George Lucas-era space fantasy into merch…

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Grogu Just Took Over The Mandalorian and Grogu Promo Push

Editorial header image showing Grogu seated with Jon Favreau, Pedro Pascal, and Sigourney Weaver during a Mandalorian and Grogu promo roundtable

Lucasfilm’s latest The Mandalorian and Grogu video is not a trailer, not a TV spot, and not exactly a standard featurette either. Titled “Grogu Joins the Conversation,” the new promo leans hard into the movie’s safest marketing weapon: put Grogu in the room, let everyone else orbit around him, and watch the internet do the rest. Fantha Tracks describes the clip as Grogu sitting down with Pedro Pascal, Sigourney Weaver, and Jon Favreau to discuss the film, while StarWars.com is using the same video as a featured push for the movie. This Is Less About Plot and More About Vibe That is what makes the clip interesting. It is not really trying to reveal major new story details. Instead, it feels like Lucasfilm settling into the tone of the campaign and reminding people that The Mandalorian and Grogu is not just another Disney+ extension anymore. This is the big-screen version…

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Jeremy Allen White Says Finding Rotta the Hutt’s Voice Was Freer Than Playing Bruce Springsteen

Split header image showing Rotta the Hutt beside Jeremy Allen White with headline text about the actor comparing the role to playing Bruce Springsteen

Jeremy Allen White has now given one of the better descriptions yet of what makes The Mandalorian and Grogu such a strange swing. Speaking in Empire-backed coverage surfaced this month, White said playing Rotta the Hutt gave him “a bit more freedom” than playing Bruce Springsteen, because Springsteen’s voice is so instantly recognizable. Rotta, by contrast, gave him more room to experiment — including, in his words, the fact that “my speaking voice changes [as Rotta].” That is a weird comparison on paper, but it actually tells you a lot about what kind of performance this is. Rotta Is Clearly Not Being Played as a Joke That matters because White is not just voicing some throwaway CGI creature. Lucasfilm has already confirmed that he plays Rotta the Hutt in The Mandalorian and Grogu, the upcoming theatrical Star Wars film opening May 22, 2026. Official material has also made it clear…

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D23 2026 Could Be a Big Night for Ahsoka Season 2 and Star Wars: Starfighter

D23 2026 header image featuring the event logo alongside Ahsoka and Star Wars Starfighter visuals with article headline text

Disney has now locked in one date that Star Wars fans should probably circle in red: the Disney Entertainment Showcase at D23 2026 will take place on August 14 at 7:00 p.m. at the Honda Center in Anaheim. Official D23 event pages describe the showcase as the place for stars, storytellers, “exciting reveals,” sneak peeks, and some of Disney’s biggest announcements across film, television, and streaming. That does not confirm any specific Star Wars reveals yet. But it absolutely puts the showcase on the radar as one of the most likely places for Lucasfilm to show something new. Ahsoka Season 2 Feels Like the Most Obvious Candidate If one Star Wars project looks naturally positioned for a D23 spotlight, it is Ahsoka Season 2. StarWars.com said in January that the series was already in production for its second season, with Dave Filoni continuing as showrunner. That alone makes August feel…

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Phil Lord’s New Solo Comment Suggests Han Was Meant to Be More Than a One-Off

Star Wars film still with overlaid headline text about Phil Lord’s comment suggesting Solo was meant to be more than a one-off

A throwaway line from Phil Lord may have just reopened one of the strangest “what if” questions in modern Star Wars. During a recent Happy Sad Confused interview with Josh Horowitz, Lord said one benefit of not being “on the hook for making like three Han Solo sequels” was that he and Chris Miller could go make original franchise material instead. It was not framed like a big reveal, but it landed like one. Because if you take that line at face value, Lucasfilm’s plan for Solo may once have stretched well beyond a single movie. That Is a Bigger Han Solo Plan Than Fans Ever Officially Heard About The key detail here is the wording. Lord did not say “maybe there could have been more.” He said “three Han Solo sequels,” which strongly suggests there was at least some version of a longer-term roadmap in the air when he…

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Ryan Gosling Says One Star Wars: Starfighter Scene Was “One of the Most Fun” He’s Ever Done

Ryan Gosling with an alien creature in a Star Wars: Starfighter article header about his favorite creature scene

Star Wars: Starfighter is still keeping most of its secrets locked down, but Ryan Gosling just gave away a very telling little detail about the movie’s creature work. Speaking in a recent interview, Gosling said he visited the creature shop early during production so he could see what was being built and figure out ways to interact with those creations in the film. According to him, he ended up spotting one “very special” creature that had originally been meant as a background character, asked if he could have a scene with it, and that moment turned into “one of the most fun scenes” he has ever done. He also said the team later gave him a model of the creature as his wrap gift, and that it is now sitting in his house. A Small Quote That Says a Lot That is not a plot reveal, but it is exactly…

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John Boyega Says He’s Had Talks With Dave Filoni About Returning as Finn

Header image of John Boyega as Finn and Dave Filoni with text about talks regarding a possible Star Wars return

John Boyega has just given Star Wars fans a small but very real reason to start paying attention to Finn again. During an appearance at MegaCon Orlando, an audience member reportedly shouted, “Get Dave on the phone,” referring to new Lucasfilm President and Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni. Boyega’s answer was simple: “I actually have, actually.” Multiple entertainment outlets have since picked up the moment as confirmation that he has at least spoken with Filoni about a possible Star Wars return. A Small Quote With Big Finn Energy This is not a casting announcement. It is not Lucasfilm confirming a new movie, series, or Finn-led project. But it is still notable. Boyega has had a complicated relationship with Star Wars in the years since the sequel trilogy, openly discussing disappointment with how Finn’s arc was handled. That is why this quote lands harder than a throwaway convention soundbite normally would….

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Hayden Christensen Says His Daughter Still Hasn’t Watched His Star Wars Movies

Header image of Hayden Christensen with Anakin Skywalker and headline text saying his daughter still has not seen Star Wars

Hayden Christensen says his daughter still has not really watched his Star Wars movies, and the reason is honestly kind of perfect. Speaking at GalaxyCon, Christensen said she knows he plays “a significant character,” but has still not properly seen the films. According to him, the issue seems to be pretty simple: she knows he becomes Darth Vader, she knows Darth Vader is a bad guy, and she does not want to watch her dad as the villain. A Very Star Wars Parenting Problem It is one of those stories that only really works in Star Wars. For most actors, telling your kid you played an important movie character probably sounds pretty straightforward. For Hayden Christensen, it apparently comes with the added complication that the character eventually becomes one of the most famous villains in film history. That makes this less about franchise legacy and more about a kid understandably…

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Star Wars: A New Hope Began Filming 50 Years Ago Today

Behind-the-scenes Star Wars image of Obi-Wan and Luke in the desert with text marking that A New Hope began filming 50 years ago today

Fifty years ago today, Star Wars stopped being an idea and started becoming a movie. On March 22, 1976, principal photography began on what was then called The Star Wars, with cameras rolling in Tunisia on the edge of the Sahara. Lucasfilm is marking the date today, framing it as the moment one of the most important films in modern pop culture officially went into production. The Day the Galaxy Really Started Moving That date matters because it was the point where George Lucas’ risky space fantasy became something real. By then, Lucas had already pushed through years of development, multiple screenplay drafts, studio skepticism, and the early build-out of the creative machine that would eventually become part of Star Wars legend, including Industrial Light & Magic and Ben Burtt’s sound work. But March 22, 1976 was when the project finally moved from concept art, scripts, and headaches into actual…

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Kelly Marie Tran Reflects on The Last Jedi Backlash Nearly 10 Years Later

Kelly Marie Tran as Rose Tico in a Star Wars article header with text about reflecting on The Last Jedi backlash nearly 10 years later

Nearly a decade after Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Kelly Marie Tran is reflecting on the backlash she faced after joining the sequel trilogy — and the biggest change now is how she sees it. Speaking recently about that period, Tran said the hardest part at the time was believing the abuse meant she did not belong. Looking back now, she says the thing she did not understand then was simple: it was not her fault. She also said that after ten years of therapy, support groups, and personal work, she believes she would experience it very differently now. A Star Wars Wound That Never Really Left the Conversation Tran joined The Last Jedi in 2017 as Rose Tico, becoming the first Asian American woman in a leading role in a Star Wars film. In the aftermath, she became the target of racist and sexist harassment online, a response that…

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