Jon Favreau Teases Big Plans for Grogu
Expect a lot more Grogu. Jon Favreau is mapping out a bigger future for Star Wars’ pint-size scene-stealer.
Right, so everyone's favourite Star Wars pairing – the helmeted man with a surprising heart of gold, and his oddly adorable green companion – are gearing up for a big-screen adventure in The Mandalorian and Grogu. If you've been wondering if this film spells the end for this duo, Jon Favreau is here to put that anxiety to bed. In fact, he's got more than a few long-term plans, especially when it comes to Grogu. Of course he does – Grogu is basically the Baby Yoda goldmine, and Disney isn't about to let that go quietly off to Dagobah.
Favreau Has Plans (With a Capital P) for Grogu
Speaking very candidly to GamesRadar+, Favreau sounded like a man with a giant whiteboard of plotlines. Paraphrasing, he reckons there's loads of room to take these characters further, especially since Grogu's species ages at a snail's pace. For context, when we met Yoda back in The Empire Strikes Back, he was on the wrong side of 900 years old. Grogu is barely 50. In Star Wars terms, he's basically still in nursery.
That super-long lifespan means, as Favreau puts it, Grogu could easily be alive for just about every major event in the Star Wars timeline – so don't expect a dramatic exit or any major time pressure on his story arc. The upshot? There's lots of opportunities for more Grogu content – which, shockingly, suits Disney just fine.
'Grogu is on a path to be both a Jedi and a Mandalorian. He's been making choices, learning from the best, and he's got a great teacher now. Because his species live so long, there's all sorts of stories we could tell that spring from that.'
What's Grogu's Backstory Now?
If you've found Grogu's Jedi connections a bit hand-wavey in the past, Favreau laid it out: Grogu isn't following the traditional Jedi youngling path, but he's not exactly a dropout either. He's studied with Luke Skywalker (that much is canon), and there are plenty of hints he remembers Yoda. Grogu was apparently knocking about the Jedi Temple before everything went sideways with Order 66, so he's got some serious baggage and backstory.
The other point Favreau keeps banging on about (with all the enthusiasm of a Jedi recruiter) is that using the Force isn't about bloodlines or prophecies – it's a learned skill, like sports or playing the clarinet. Even without a full-time teacher, Grogu's still meditating, sticking to the discipline, and – in Favreau's opinion – getting stronger.
He even draws a line to Luke, who only got a crash course from Obi-Wan and Yoda, but still managed to handle himself. So we're probably going to see Grogu continue levelling up, even if he's doing it a bit off the beaten Jedi path.
Where Does The Mandalorian and Grogu Fit Into All This?
- The story happens after the fall of the Empire – so we're in that classic Star Wars post-original-trilogy, pre-sequel-trilogy era.
- With Imperial warlords popping up across the galaxy, the New Republic is still fighting to keep the old Rebellion's victories alive.
- Enter Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), still taking jobs as a bounty hunter with Grogu by his side, now officially an apprentice rather than just a stowaway.
The film hits cinemas on the 22nd of May. Early word is it's entertaining, but if you're hoping for a radical change-up from the Disney+ series, you might be a bit underwhelmed. Apparently, the film sticks pretty close to the tone and style we already know, so manage your expectations accordingly.
To sum up: The adventures of Grogu and his shiny helmeted mate are very much continuing – not just in this new film, but possibly for decades (or centuries) to come, if Favreau and Disney have their way.