The Star Wars train is moving full-steam ahead toward the May 27 Disney+ release of Obi-Wan Kenobi, which will take a break from the interconnected shows that make up the Mandoverse. The last project to take place in the post-Return of the Jedi era was The Book of Boba Fett, which showcased Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen as the bounty hunters Boba Fett and Fennec Shand. The project also featured an appearance from Pedro Pascal's Din Djarin, better known as the Mandalorian, who was introduced in Star Wars' first Disney+ series of the same name.
Before The Book of Boba Fett was released, it was being marketed as "Season 2.5" of The Mandalorian. The first four episodes exclusively featured Boba Fett and Fennec, but Episodes 5 and 6 were solely devoted to Din and his life after being separated from Grogu. The finale showcased the team-up between Din and Boba, and toward the end, the Mandalorian was finally reunited with Grogu. The two set off on Din's N-1 Starfighter, and that is where their story will pick up in Season 3 of The Mandalorian.
Disney recently released a documentary about The Book of Boba Fett titled Disney Gallery: Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett to go behind the scenes of the show and feature some insight from the creators, including why the Mandalorian became a featured character.
Why the Mandalorian was in The Book of Boba Fett
In the Disney Gallery: Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett documentary on Disney+, executive producers Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni talked about The Book of Boba Fett and why they decided to include Din Djarin and plotlines from The Mandalorian.
Filoni stated that they "felt that it would be difficult" to tell the full story of Boba Fett without having an appearance from Din. He added that "he's a friend of Boba's," and that they decided to feature him from "the very beginning:"
"At the very beginning, Jon [Favreau] and I look through all the season and, Jon has a bunch of things he wants to accomplish, and, you know, we both like Mando, and we felt that it would be difficult for us to go a whole season without seeing him. And so, he’s a friend of Boba’s, so it makes sense to bring him back into the story."
Favreau joined in and talked about the "father-child relationship" between Din and Grogu. He said that it "felt like fertile territory" to continue Mando's story after their separation because "his life" had "(lost) some of its meaning:"
"Having The Book of Boba Fett come in the timeline and let everything settle, it allowed us to let some time pass, to take a breather, and meet The Mandalorian after he’d taken his helmet off and that The Child was no longer in his life. That father-child relationship that had developed was no longer there. And so his life, I think, would lose some of its meaning. That felt like fertile territory."
The show's creator continued by talking about how "exposition can always be a huge speed bump," when it comes to other stories, but how it is opposite in the galaxy far, far away because people "wanna know more about the lore." He then made a callback to A New Hope when Obi-Wan tells Luke about life before the Empire:
"Exposition can always be a huge speed bump in the middle of the road. But in Star Wars, you’re at the edge of your seat ’cause you wanna know more about the lore. I always point back to the scene where the lightsaber comes out and Obi-Wan Kenobi starts talking about the Clone Wars and Luke’s father."
Favreau also mentioned "the backstory" that was set up in the first two seasons of The Mandalorian and all of the questions that came along about Mandalore's history. They thought it was a good time to "show imagery" from events that were brought up in that show:
"So, to have the backstory of Mandalore show up now, three seasons into our storytelling, because people are so curious about what was The Purge, what was the Night of a Thousand Tears, the Songs of the Eons Past. And so we started to begin to show imagery. Now that imagery had to be evocative of what George [Lucas] and Dave [Filoni] created in Mandalore and the animated shows. But this was our way to start to get into that."
What's Next for Din Djarin?
Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni are trying to create a universe within Star Wars where each project plays off one another, similar to how Marvel Studios formats the MCU. The first two seasons of The Mandalorian were the introductory chapter into the shared timeline, and The Book of Boba Fett was the first project to branch out from that main story.
As Filoni said, Boba and Din are now friends. They established a relationship between the two of them in Season 2 of The Mandalorian, and they now know that they can count on one another, so there was no worry that it wouldn't make sense for Mando to show up in the show. Boba had a problem that he couldn't solve on his own, so he turned to one of the only people whom he was on good terms with for help.
Din's main focus throughout his own show, as well as The Book of Boba Fett, was Grogu. Even after their separation, he went to the planet that Luke Skywalker was on to check on him, which further developed their relationship and bond. Grogu ultimately chose to turn down Jedi training so that he could be with Din, and now that the two are back together again, Mando can focus on the task at hand instead of having to worry about Grogu.
Episode 5 of The Book of Boba Fett featured Din getting cast out of his Mandalorian creed, and he was told that the only way to get back in would include traveling to Mandalore and cleansing himself in the waters. This will likely be where the pair travel in Season 3, and since Din is still in possession of the Darksaber, he may choose to become the ruler of the planet after he is officially a Mandalorian again.
Season 3 of The Mandalorian is expected to be released on Disney+ in late 2022.
