The Mandalorian & Grogu: Release date, plot, cast & everything we know about Mando's silver screen debut

Screenshots from The Mandalorian & Grogu.
Promotional art for "The Mandalorian and Grogu." (Image credit: Disney)

Disney has loads of upcoming Star Wars movies in development, with the first to hit theaters being 2026's The Mandalorian & Grogu, continuing the tale of everyone's favorite shiny bounty hunter and his little green friend. Here's everything we know about The Mandalorian & Grogu.

The Mandalorian & Grogu is what we're getting in place of The Mandalorian season 4, as Disney pivots away from the focus on Star Wars TV shows and back towards cinematic releases. It's a bold choice from Disney, and we'll have to see if that loyal Disney+ audience heads out to the theaters in early 2026.

The Mandalorian & Grogu release date

The Mandalorian Din Djarin and Grogu. (Image credit: Disney)

While we still have to wait a little while, The Mandalorian & Grogu movie has a release date locked in for May 22, 2026.

This will be the first Star Wars movie in cinemas since 2019's The Rise of Skywalker, which marked the end of the Skywalker Saga. Another Star Wars theatrical feature was set to drop on Dec. 18, 2026, and that could very well have been the Daisy Ridley-led Rey Skywalker movie. In late 2024, Disney removed that Star Wars slot from its theatrical schedule.

Right now, it appears that the project is undergoing a major script rework with a new writer. After Din Djarin and Grogu’s next journey, Shawn Levy's Star Wars: Starfighter will take the timeline past Episode IX, with Ryan Gosling set as the lead, on May 28, 2027.

Watch The Mandalorian on Disney+Standard (with ads): Premium (no ads):

Watch The Mandalorian on Disney+
Standard (with ads): $11.99/month or $119.99/yearPremium (no ads): $18.99/month or $189.99/year

Sign up to Disney+ to watch all three seasons of The Mandalorian. The Mandalorian & Grogu will be debuting exclusively in theaters, but it will also be on Disney+ at a later point.

You can also catch the Star Wars movies and TV shows on there, plus loads of other Disney, Marvel, and Nat Geo content too.

What is the plot of The Mandalorian & Grogu?

Still from "The Mandalorian" season 3. (Image credit: Disney)

The Mandalorian season 3 ended with Din Djarin, Grogu, and Bo-Katan (with the help of a Mandalorian army) seemingly destroying Moff Gideon and his Imperial followers once and for all, which led to the Kryze heiress reclaiming Mandalore for their people.

Following those events, Din Djarin struck a deal with the New Republic to help them hunt down and bring to justice other Imperial Remnant leaders, which definitely puts him and Grogu on a straight collision course with the main conflict introduced in Ahsoka's first season: Grand Admiral Thrawn returning to the known galaxy and planning (alongside other nefarious forces) to tear down the newly-formed Republic.

With the Dave Filoni-led event movie still a few years away (he must figure out Ahsoka season 2 first), it's looking like The Mandalorian & Grogu will bridge the gap between the TV series and the larger conflict on the horizon. It's safe to assume our heroes will be going after some Imperial baddies and possibly meeting with some friends and surprising legacy aliens along the way.

At Star Wars Celebration 2025, however, we got a handful of new details, including a first look at Sigourney Weaver’s veteran Rebel character and confirmation that Jeremy Allen White is playing Rotta the Hutt, son of Jabba. Moreover, an exclusive non-public teaser showed Din Djarin assaulting an AT-AT walker, meeting with Zeb Orrelios, and using a bipedal walker alongside Grogu to evade Imperial forces.

The first trailer was released in September 2025, but it didn’t reveal much about the plot either. It’s more of a mood setter, with Din Djarin’s new allies and some of Grogu’s antics being the focus of the minute-and-a-half preview. Clearly, Disney and Lucasfilm are banking on The Mandalorian’s accumulated popularity, but beyond a bunch of new striking aliens and the promise of this reworked season of TV being shot with IMAX in mind, there isn’t a lot to chew on... for now.

The Mandalorian & Grogu trailers

Still from "The Mandalorian" season 3. (Image credit: Disney)

The Mandalorian & Grogu’s first trailer arrived on September 22, 2025, well ahead of the expected release window, which suggests a second, longer look at the movie could debut in December (attached to Avatar: Fire and Ash).

As we’ve just said, this teaser isn’t especially exciting unless you’re really into Grogu being cute, but we remain hopeful that things will get a bit more interesting as the narrative is revealed. Watch the trailer below:

The Mandalorian and Grogu | Official Trailer | In Theaters May 22, 2026 - YouTube The Mandalorian and Grogu | Official Trailer | In Theaters May 22, 2026 - YouTube
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As an extra treat, we also got a first retro-inspired poster with this first trailer:

The Mandalorian & Grogu cast

Still from "The Mandalorian" season 3. (Image credit: Disney)

Pedro Pascal will be returning to play Din Djarin, the titular Mandalorian, alongside Brendan Wayne (most scenes with the helmet on) and Lateef Crowder (stuntman). Grogu needs no introduction and is a puppet, so no actor will be attached to the role unless he finally starts talking.

So far, five actors have been confirmed to be part of the cast alongside Pascal: sci-fi legend Sigourney Weaver (Alien) in a New Republic role, Jeremy Allen White (The Bear) as the voice of Rotta the Hutt, Steve Blum (Star Wars Rebels) as Zeb Orrelios, and Jonny Coyne (The Blacklist) and Hemky Madera (Spider-Man: Homecoming) as Imperial warlords that we've seen before in The Mandalorian season 3.

We can also think of plenty of names that could show up in the Mandalorian and Grogu's next story chapter due to their ties to the characters and where they are in the larger galaxy at the moment: Temuera Morrison (Boba Fett), Ming-Na Wen (Fennec Shand), Katee Sackhoff (Bo-Katan Kryze), Emily Swallow (The Armorer), Amy Sedaris (Peli Motto), Timothy Olyphant (Cobb Vanth), Omid Abtahi (Dr. Pershing), Katy O'Brian (Elia Kane), and Paul Sun-Hyung Lee (Carson Teva).

Of course, not everyone in that list must appear in The Mandalorian & Grogu, especially with Dave Filoni's event movie still moving forward, but they're all characters who can either add to Din and Grogu's journey or represent strong supporting roles. Stay tuned for more casting news in the near future.

The Mandalorian & Grogu director, writers, and crew

Still from "The Mandalorian" season 3. (Image credit: Disney)

The Mandalorian & Grogu will be directed by Jon Favreau (Iron Man, The Jungle Book) from a script by himself and Dave Filoni. The veteran filmmaker will also produce the first theatrical Star Wars release in a while alongside Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, Ian Bryce, Karen Gilchrist, and chief creative officer (and New Republic storytelling partner) Dave Filoni.

The production design is, unsurprisingly, being handled by Star Wars veterans Doug Chiang and Andrew L. Jones (The Mandalorian, Ahsoka), with costume design work led by Mary Zophres (Fly Me to the Moon).

The Mandalorian veteran Ludwig Göransson (Black Panther, Oppenheimer) will return to work on the original score after letting Joseph Shirley (The Book of Boba Fett) take the reins in the third season of the series.

Watch The Mandalorian on Disney+Standard (with ads): Premium (no ads):

Watch The Mandalorian on Disney+
Standard (with ads): $11.99/month or $119.99/yearPremium (no ads): $18.99/month or $189.99/year

Sign up to Disney+ to watch all three seasons of The Mandalorian. The Mandalorian & Grogu will be debuting exclusively in theaters, but it will also be on Disney+ at a later point.

You can also catch the Star Wars movies and TV shows on there, plus loads of other Disney, Marvel, and Nat Geo content too.

Disney+ Bundle (Disney+, Hulu, & HBO Max): $19.99/month

Disney+ Bundle (Disney+, Hulu, & HBO Max): $19.99/month

Get even better value with the Disney+ bundle, which also comes with Hulu and HBO Max.

Fran Ruiz is our resident Star Wars guy. His hunger for movies and TV series is only matched by his love for video games. He got a BA of English Studies, focusing on English Literature, from the University of Malaga, in Spain, as well as a Master's Degree in English Studies, Multilingual and Intercultural Communication. On top of writing features and other longform articles for Space.com since 2021, he is a frequent collaborator of VG247 and other gaming sites. He also serves as associate editor over at Star Wars News Net and its sister site, Movie News Net.

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